Nobody can deny that transcription services play a key role in a growing number of industries. It seems like nearly everybody has started implementing transcription as a daily tool, but the situation is not without nuance and complications. In a world where GDPR is so important for businesses, how do we walk the fine line between preserving people’s privacy and collecting the audio recordings necessary for transcription? Simply put, is it legal to record online meetings?
Rights, Responsibilities and Rules
So, it’s a very tricky topic to try and navigate simply because there are a lot of considerations. The general, blanket answer to the question is that yes, it is legal to record online meetings. However, if you are going to record an online meeting and you have to meet several criteria before you can Successfully do so.
For the purposes of this explanation, we will group your responsibilities as a business in two main categories. This is externally, which deals with how recording meetings might affect customers and users, and then internally, which talks about how recording meetings would affect employees of the business.
Externally
Externally, businesses have a legal responsibility to provide transparent communication about the fact that they intend to record conversations. If you’ve ever used a customer service helpline and been informed that the call may be recorded for quality and training purposes, it basically works in a similar vein to that. Businesses have to declare that they will be recording online meetings where public information may be discussed.
It’s also worth noting that they are required to make any audio file they create downloadable and freely accessible by the public in order to comply with the latest GDPR rules.
Internally
Internally, things are a little bit different. Most employees will have some provision built into the employment contract they signed at the beginning of their career which stipulates that the meetings they participate in may be recorded to collect information and provide transcription services. In most cases, the chair of the meeting will remind users and attendees that the meeting is being recorded, and also point to the software in use because this should also be freely accessible.
Staying Safe and Compliant
Ultimately, staying safe and compliant when recording online meetings is simply a case of being transparent with employees and uses to make sure that everybody is consenting to the recording of information. Any individual can withdraw consent for recordings to be made at any point, and you will have to respect that and make the appropriate notation moving forward.
Recognising the important role of GDPR is key for any organisation that wants to remain compliant. This is, understandably, not a distinction which is made in most cases, but it has proven to be important time and time again. As long as a business is transparent about what information is transcribed, they are usually safe. Singapore Transcription is here to help with creating accurate and reliable transcription documents provided that all parties are compliant with the latest GDPR rules.