What It Is

Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA), formally Regulation (EU) 2022/2554, is an EU-wide regulation strengthening ICT resilience for the financial sector against disruptions like cyberattacks and third-party failures. Applicable to 20 financial entity types and critical ICT providers, it employs a risk-based, proportional approach with full application from January 17, 2025.

Key Components

• **ICT Risk ManagementFrameworks for identifying, mitigating risks with annual reviews.
• **Incident Reporting4-hour notifications, 72-hour updates for major incidents.
• **Resilience TestingAnnual vulnerability scans, triennial TLPT for critical functions.
• **Third-Party OversightDue diligence, monitoring, ESAs direct supervision of CTPPs. No formal certification; compliance via RTS/ITS standards.

Why Organizations Use It

• Mandatory compliance avoids 2% turnover fines.
• Bolsters resilience amid 74% ransomware prevalence.
• Mitigates systemic risks, enhances stakeholder trust.
• Drives cybersecurity investments, harmonizes EU rules.

Implementation Overview

Conduct gap analyses, develop frameworks, implement testing/vendor programs. Targets ~22,000 EU entities; proportionality aids smaller firms. Key activities: RTS alignment, simulations, audits by 2025 deadline.

What It Is

UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) is the UK's post-Brexit adaptation of the EU GDPR, a binding legal regulation enforced by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). It establishes a risk-based, accountability-focused framework for protecting personal data of individuals in the UK, applying to controllers and processors established in the UK or targeting UK residents extraterritorially.

Key Components

• Seven core processing principles (lawfulness, purpose limitation, minimisation, accuracy, storage limitation, security, accountability).
• Enforceable data subject rights (access, rectification, erasure, portability, objection).
• Controller/processor obligations including Records of Processing Activities (RoPA), DPIAs, processor contracts, and breach notifications.
• No formal certification; compliance demonstrated via documentation and audits, with fines up to 4% of global turnover.

Why Organizations Use It

Mandatory for legal compliance to avoid ICO fines (£17.5M max). Enhances risk management, builds stakeholder trust, supports secure data-driven innovation, and provides competitive differentiation through privacy maturity.

Implementation Overview

Phased approach: data mapping/ROPA, policies/contracts, DPIAs/security, training, rights/breach processes. Applies to all sizes handling UK personal data; requires ongoing governance, no external certification but ICO audits possible. (178 words)