What is a Consent Management Platform and Why You Need it

What is a Consent Management Platform (CPM)?

A Consent Management Platform (CMP) is a software solution that helps you collect and manage personal information and consents in line with data protection laws and regulations like the EU’s GDPR, California’s CCPA, or Brazil’s LGPD.

It enables you to gain insight into the personal data lifecycle from the moment of opt-in to the data removal, allowing you to track, monitor, and respond to the data subject’s request and consent preferences.

The CMP also allows you to centrally manage notices and propagate them to all consent collection channels.

Although there are several consent management platforms on the market, there are a lot of different concepts.

Make sure you choose the one that will be a proper fit, especially when integrating your front-end consent collection channels (website, mobile apps, CRM systems, or marketing platforms).

CMP will also provide a clear view of activities so that you can demonstrate compliance for any data subject, on any level, at any time.

This article will explain what a consent management platform (CMP) is, how it works and how Data Privacy Manager is designed to fit your needs and resolve your biggest challenges.

Consent management design

Consent management design needs to include consent collection, a consent management engine, and data processing.

In today’s world of omnichannel marketing, we often collect consent through multiple customer-facing channels, including websites, mobile apps, user profiles, contact centers, and points of sale.

Consent management design should include all customer-facing channels to ensure that the processing of personal data is always in line with the data subject’s preferences. They are called consent collection points.

Once consent is collected, it should be stored in a central consent repository. The consent repository should be designed as a secure database and a single source of truth for all data processing based on data subject consent.

The consent management engine identifies data subjects and harmonizes their consent preferences collected through any collection point.

Data Privacy Manager stores them in the central consent repository with the right amount of detail to allow the demonstration of compliant opt-in.

The central consent repository is sometimes called the records of consent. Marketing engines use the records of consent to ensure all marketing communication is in line with data subjects’ preferences.

Marketing communication and analytics are the usual suspects and a straightforward example of data processing based on consent. The processing is lawful until data subjects withdraw consent (opt-out).

Organizations must enable easy and effective withdrawal of consent to the processing of personal data.

Withdrawal should be enabled on all channels and accessible through all communication events, much like the unsubscribe function in an online newsletter.

Furthermore, with records of consent being in a central repository, Organizations can design privacy preference centers for data subjects. A central point, accessible to individuals, for managing all consents and communication preferences.

Is there an all-around consent management solution?

Privacy management platforms should have advanced consent management functionalities, like Data Privacy Manager (DPM).

Any personal data collected and processed on the basis of an individual’s consent is managed in a GDPR-compliant way. This includes all previously described functionalities and much more.

Besides consent collection and, consequently, data processing, there are two additional stages of the personal data lifecycle. Once the data subject withdraws the consent, collected data needs to be retained.

Moreover, once the data retention period expires, collected personal data should be removed, either by deleting the data or by anonymizing it.

If you want to read more about GDPR-compliant personal data removal, download our E-book:

DPM Consent and Preference Management platform

Data Privacy Manager uses bi-directional communication with consent collection points and data processing platforms.

It harmonizes data and communication preferences and represents a single source of truth for all consent. It also serves to demonstrate the GDPR-compliant consent management process.

Furthermore, it takes care of personal data after consent withdrawal and, eventually, data removal.

This is very important because retention and removal policies are often disregarded in the process.

If personal data is not removed in time, it represents a huge risk for Organizations because storing personal data without a purpose is contradictory to the fair information practices principle and is not compliant with the General Data Protection Regulation.

Data Privacy Manager’s consent module is used as a standalone tool or as a part of an end-to-end privacy management platform.

As a standalone tool, it consists of three groups of functionalities:

• Consent administration
• Records of consent
• Opt-out funnel

Additionally, as a part of an end-to-end privacy management platform, it automatically provides a Privacy 360° view of a single individual.

It provides information not only about consent history, active processing, and communication preferences but also about other data processing based on another lawful basis.

Additionally, the Data Privacy Manager connects all data processing, including consent-based, with the records of processing activities.

A privacy-oriented self-service portal

Having privacy-friendly consent management should be one of your top priorities when introducing privacy programs.

The judicial practice has shown that the absence of a simple and effective consent withdrawal mechanism will not be tolerated.

A privacy portal provides individuals with a simple and effective mechanism for opt-ins and opt-outs.

The consent management platform then ensures an individual’s preferences are respected, providing a single source of truth for all data processing based on consent, including marketing and analytics.

DPM Privacy Portal is an out-of-the-box privacy-oriented self-service portal.

Fueled by Data Privacy Manager’s consent management engine, it gives an overview of personal data processing to the individual, together with a user-friendly consent and preference management interface.

It is secure, mobile-friendly, and provides an unparalleled level of transparency toward clients.

Finally, think about the complexity of implementing such a solution. If you are in violation of GDPR, the data protection authority can give you a very short deadline to comply and implement all needed functionalities, especially if it takes custom development and changes to the existing system with a privacy-unfriendly design.

It is much faster to implement an out-of-the-box product like Data Privacy Manager. Especially when working with experts who can help accelerate the project dramatically.