Are UK restrictions on social media cramping a business's Creativity?

Thanks to the new privacy laws in the UK, businesses may not be aware how those privacy laws really affect the information gained from social media websites. Many smaller businesses do not have the IT professionals to assist in interpreting the new laws and making certain they are followed precisely. Did you know a business may gain information off social media websites such as Facebook, Twitter or Kickbox. But, there are limitations to how the data may be used. For example, businesses cannot link the data to back to a particular person.

How can data from Facebook or Facebook Connect be used to aid a business in finding new customers? Facebook posts, for example, can be traced back to an individual person. What does this mean for the UK’s new data privacy laws that forbid a company from targeting specific groups for marketing purposes? Companies must not keep the data any longer than they need it and it is only gathered for a specific purpose.

Accidental loss of social media data may hurt businesses’ Efforts

For many employees, it isn’t handling sensitive data from social media websites is the real problem. It is the nightmare of trying to retrieve that information mid-campaign, if it is lost due to a power outage or natural disaster. However, a company may need hard disk recovery or
need to hire a professional to perform data recovery services in the UK, in such instances.

However, the terms and conditions on social media sites may be problematic for companies. For many, it could be considered an ‘elephant in the room.’ The reason is because many websites often update their terms and use ambiguous terms in their conditions. This is why it is more than simply losing data and needing data recovery services or Raid 5 data recovery. A social media website changing even a few terms and conditions may prove to be a pitfall to a UK business. Since data privacy regulations are in effect, a UK business must account for how data is being used. But, many websites terms and conditions leave a big disconnect for company employees on what may be gathered and how it can be used. It may explain why data privacy laws, loss of data and the need for hard disk data recovery in the UK, and using social media from such websites may be difficult for a UK company to access if they are following data privacy laws and keeping data safe.

Is it still profitable for companies to mine data from such social websites? Companies may have to be creative in gathering and using information so that they stay in compliance with data privacy rules. Could having a data loss strategy save small businesses money in the long run if there is a disaster? These are questions companies should answer before committing resources to gather data from Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites.