Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) Certification Practice Test

Who is typically responsible for ensuring data compliance within an organization?

1. All employees

2. Data users

3. External auditors

4. Human Resources department

The correct answer is: Data users

The responsibility for ensuring data compliance within an organization primarily lies with data users. Data users are individuals or roles within an organization who actively handle, process, and manage data. These individuals are crucial in following established data protection policies and legal frameworks relevant to the organization, such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) or other data privacy laws. Data users are tasked with understanding the compliance requirements that relate to their use of data, which includes adhering to policies for secure data handling, reporting breaches, and ensuring accurate data management practices. Their direct interaction with data means they are often the first line of defense in preventing data mishandling or violations of compliance regulations. While all employees may play a role in fostering a culture of compliance and data safety, and departments like Human Resources might have specific areas of compliance related to employee data, the primary and most accountable role in managing data compliance falls to the data users themselves. External auditors have a role in assessing and evaluating compliance but are not responsible for implementing compliance measures within the organization on a day-to-day basis.