Worldwide employment screening through a secure data protection process
Harm Voot, CEO
Validata was founded in 2009 and is an innovative global technology company that specialises in the provision of expert background screenings. With its headquarters in Amsterdam and a second location in Stockholm, Validata conducts thousands of screenings worldwide each year. This creates a commitment to operate responsibly and ensure that organisations grow sustainably.
To that effect, company employs a Legal Counsel, Information Security Officer, and a Privacy Officer/Data Protection Officer (DPO). This team is dedicated to ensuring that, when using their services, clients meet all (inter)national privacy laws and regulations.
Data minimisation is one aspect that plays a significant role nowadays. It determines how a company processes and protects the personal data being screened in their software.
Screening on a global scale is a complex process, that is why Validata has nurtured a network of vetted data suppliers. ‘We can verify a candidate’s identity, financial standing, previous education, work experience, criminal record, PEP and Sanction list, and adverse media (social media searches) amongst other checks’, they comment. Unsurprisingly, employment screening can often be viewed as an invasion of a candidate’s privacy. This is why the company manages this sensitive process for their clients.
As the legal basis for screening is the ‘legitimate interest’ of the clients, Validata advises them on how to adopt an appropriate HR screening policy in line with the GDPR principles of ‘proportionality’ and ‘subsidiarity’. This means that they ensure the client only verifies the data relevant to a candidate’s position and that the end justifies ‘the means’. ‘If the objective of a screening – to reduce the risks of working in certain positions – can be achieved in a way that causes less infringement of the privacy of the person concerned, this should be tried first. In addition, as a ‘data controller’, we are obliged to inform the candidate prior to their screening’, says the group.
Data protection is at the heart of what Validata does and how they manage business operations, helping their clients employ teams that are built on mutual trust and transparency.
