The California Consumer Privacy Act, or CCPA, took effect on January 1, 2020. While the new law is not as expansive as the EU’s GDPR, it is one of the United States’ broadest consumer protection laws to date. As a state statute that provides privacy rights and consumer protections for Californians, the CCPA applies to all businesses, including nonprofits, that collect personal data and do business in California. There are specific guidelines that determine which organizations fall under the umbrella of CCPA compliance, which is not a national requirement. In preparation, The Bureaus, Inc. has updated its website and extends CCPA privacy protections to all California consumers. The Bureaus, Inc. executive team collaborated with Branding Arc, a full-service digital marketing agency specializing in the receivables management industry, to take the necessary steps to achieve compliance.

“The increasing demands of new regulations require us to embrace and adapt to new standards while deploying technology that ensures our compliance with new rules and regulations. The Bureaus is proud to take this next step of CCPA compliance that will solidify the confidence and trust that our partners and consumers have in our services,” says Aristotle Sangalang, President of The Bureaus, Inc. “Throughout the decades, we have been constantly guided by ethics, integrity, and transparency. The CCPA is an important milestone in U.S. consumer rights and our compliance benefits consumers.”

Step 1: Legal Collaboration

The first step was to establish processes for compliance with the new CCPA. The Bureaus’ legal team worked with the Branding Arc team to better understand what this compliance meant. The two teams conducted a review of the website to take inventory of what consumer information was being tracked. This helped us to better understand what steps were needed to optimize conformance with the requirements of the new law. The legal team and web developers took a consumer-friendly approach when reviewing the website tracking cookies and analytics to validate that our new processes would comply with the new regulations.

Step 2: Designing the Technology

Facing the need to meet a sweeping array of consumer rights, the teams then determined what technology would be necessary to improve the consumer experience relative to CCPA compliance. With these needs in mind, the Branding Arc developers created the underlying technology while The Bureaus team focused on the disclosure language. Because the new law requires that consumers be informed of their rights and their obligations to enforce it, a series of webpages and forms were developed to comply with the new rules.

Step 3: Tech Deployment

After the new technology was created, it was connected to the website and deployed. The team identified potential barriers through configuration, testing, and optimization, ensuring the high-quality that our partners and consumers expect. Working in cooperation with the Branding Arc team, we were able to seamlessly integrate the newly required processes with our website to meet the compliance requirements of the new law.

Step 4: Legal Validation

The final step was comprehensive testing to confirm that the newly added technology components were completely incorporated into The Bureaus’ website and would meet the requirements of CCPA. Working with The Bureaus’ legal team, Branding Arc developers conducted compliance reviews to ensure that both the technology and our team were ready to meet the challenges of the new rules.

“The CCPA is just the beginning of consumer-driven protections and privacy here in the United States,” continues Mr. Sangalang. “At The Bureaus, we respect personal information and each consumer’s right to have it used it appropriately. We will continue to work with our developers to go above and beyond the standards of best practice. Our continued progress in consumer protection, accessibility, and compliance allow us to remain leaders within the industry through better performance, higher consumer satisfaction, greater efficiency, and overall company growth”

About The Bureaus, Inc.

The Bureaus, Inc. is a master servicer for accounts receivable portfolios and a Certified Professional Receivables Company. Using cutting edge technology, internally developed proprietary tools, and the vast expertise of its management team, The Bureaus, Inc. combines technological strategies with data mining capabilities to identify opportunities not usually found by other asset management firms. Founded in 1928, The Bureaus, Inc. is located in Northbrook, Illinois.