Simplifying GDPR Registers: A Practical Use Case with Dastra
Can you introduce yourselves?
Julia Garcia de Barros, DPO, and Stéphane Riffard, DPO and CISO for the Syndicat Mixte Manche Numérique.
I hold a Master's degree in Digital Law, while Stéphane has a background in Computer Science. Together, we bring complementary expertise, combining legal and technical skills essential for our roles as Data Protection Officers (DPOs).
What is your role as DPO?
As DPOs, our mission is to support local communities in their journey toward GDPR compliance.
We currently work with 80 municipalities, and our long-term objective is to guide all municipalities in the Manche department through the compliance process.
We assist them in maintaining various registries, providing legal and operational guidance, and supply them with standard document templates such as information notices. And most importantly, raising awareness on the importance of personal data protection.
We strive to make data protection a topic that is both accessible and actionable for all stakeholders.
We are currently working with 80 municipalities.
We also perform this work internally for the syndicate.
Why did you choose Dastra?
Dastra is a young platform that has the qualities we were looking for, in addition to a reasonable price compared to others.
We placed our trust in the platform’s evolution, anticipating that it would progressively integrate all the essential components for effective service management. Today, that bet has paid off—with regular updates that reflect our feedback and meet our operational needs.
What were your objectives?
We wanted to switch platforms because the one we had was not very user-friendly.
We were looking for a clear and user-friendly interface, allowing agents from member communities to navigate the platform with ease.
Our goal was to ensure that members could take ownership of the tool and become more autonomous in managing their compliance efforts.
It was also important that the platform be purpose-built for GDPR-related tasks, such as registry management and audit tracking—not just a repurposed system initially designed for information security management.
Lastly, we wanted access to responsive customer support, capable of addressing issues promptly and integrating our feedback into the platform’s development.
What challenges did you face before purchasing Dastra?
Before purchasing Dastra, we were using another SaaS software that was primarily designed for IT security.
This resulted in an unfriendly interface and a slightly complicated learning curve for a legal professional.
We did not grant access to the agents of the member communities as they would not have been able to navigate through it.
The solution did not evolve quickly enough for us.
How was the transition to Dastra?
The transition to Dastra went very smoothly.
The various modules are clearly organized, and their seamless integration significantly simplifies data entry.
The template library and its customization options have proven to be extremely valuable. We took the opportunity to redesign our existing templates to align with the structure of the software, which presents them in a more logical and readable format.
As with any software transition, there was an initial period of adjustment and adaptation, but it ultimately enabled us to evolve and improve our working methods.
What was the decision-making process like?
After testing multiple tools, Dastra stood out with the best quality-to-price ratio and a feature set aligned with our requirements.
It took us a bit of time to decide, considering the number of solutions available on the market.
What benefits have you gained from using Dastra?
Dastra has greatly simplified the creation and management of our compliance registries.
Thanks to the customizable templates we've developed, we can now focus discussions with member communities on key issues, rather than on administrative formalities.
For communities that are further along in their compliance journey, we’ve granted them direct access to the platform. The feedback has been very positive, particularly regarding the intuitive and user-friendly interface, which makes navigating between modules straightforward.
We're also currently running a pilot program with several municipalities to test more granular profile management—assigning access rights based on authorization levels and organizational roles.
