Video Conference Guidelines During Lockdown
I never thought I’d say this, but staying at home during lockdown has lead to me travelling less and actually becoming more productive. With all of the online video conferencing tools that are available, and for free!, it’s amazingly easy to keep in touch with customers, colleagues, staff and even family members. This new way of communicating has definitely made life easier, not just during lockdown but also going forward into our ‘new normal’. I, for one, will definitely keep using the technology to keep in touch with customers and colleagues and keep my travel time to a minimum.As much as Video Conferencing is great, however, it has caused an inappropriate sharing of data in the misbelief that this is in the public interest.
Here is a quite simple guideline on what to look out for:
If you are the host of a video conference, let your attendees know that it’s ok not to use the video if they wish to maintain privacy. We are mostly operating from home and some might not feel comfortable sharing that with others. Make them aware that they are still able to participate without the video being on.
Also, let the participants know if the session is being recorded. Not only this is good practice from a data protection point of view, but it is also polite and respectful. There is nothing worse than suddenly noticing the red dot in the top left-hand corner and realising that you’re being recorded without being made aware. This happened to me just the other day and I remember thinking ‘how rude!’.
Operate with integrity and respect towards your customers, colleagues and staff; maintaining high standards even during the lockdown will go a long way to strengthen your reputation and sets you apart from the competition. It goes without saying that it will also keep you GDPR compliant!