The FTC Safeguards Rule is in effect!
Whether you’ve been procrastinating or already have a process in place to provide physical, administrative, and technical protection of consumer data, here’s a compliance checklist to ensure you’re prepared:
Implement a process and/or technology like ours to verify consumer identity and check for fraudulent IDs. ID fraud is rampant, criminals are getting smarter, and the IDs they’re creating are more realistic looking than ever.
Develop physical and technical controls to limit access to customer information only to those employees who need it to perform their job functions.
Have procedures for securely disposing of customer information when it is no longer needed and more importantly storing information from dead deals the required 5 years. If you don’t have a platform like ours that creates a digital deal jacket from the start, that’s a lot of paper to be scanned and/or stored.
Create a plan for responding to data breaches, including notifying affected customers and reporting the breach to appropriate authorities.
Schedule regular reviews and update the compliance process to ensure that it remains current and effective and take corrective action as necessary.
Ensure no private consumer information is left exposed in unsecure locations. Think – salesperson’s desk, the copy machine. These actions leave you at risk for violations and hefty fines. Leveraging a platform that almost completely eliminates paper (like ours) protects your dealership and your customers.
Make sure your sales staff isn’t storing consumer information on their cell phone or personal email. This seemingly “easy” way to capture the info is extremely costly. By using a solution with an app (like ours), you can quickly capture the driver’s license info AND check for fraud.
Create a process to securely send and receive consumer information for remote deals. Instead of having buyers email or text information to your staff – which is not compliant – send them a secure link (like our tech has) that allows them to upload the documents you need to process the sale.
Conduct regular audits or assessments to ensure ongoing compliance with the FTC’s Safeguards rule.
Use a technology platform like ours that is the only complete and proactive credit and compliance solution from lead to sale, and beyond.
As a dealership owner or manager, ensuring compliance with the FTC’s Safeguards rule can be a daunting task, especially if you don’t have the necessary resources and expertise in-house. By partnering with Informativ and using their dealer compliance software, you will have peace of mind that your dealership is fully compliant with the FTC’s Safeguards rule and that your customers’ information is protected from unauthorized access, use, or disclosure.
Protect your dealership – run a free OFAC check now.