The company has been in business for 25 years, but 17 years since it specialized in privacy, security and data protection. It could be said that, practically, since the first legislative movements were carried out in an area in which, by the way, Spain was the country that filed the most sanctions in the entire European Union in 2021. Thus, Jeva, specialized in SMEs and micro-SMEs, helped launch the first program for data protection of the 2003 law, being a pioneer in an issue that is growing, as evidenced by the EU’s legal initiatives, and that affects everything that handles third-party data.
“We helped bring out the first Cloud program for data protection law in 2007, including the legal modifications to that law, and we were the company that developed the first data protection implementation program for the 2018 law,” explains its CEO, José Enrique Liarte. “We wanted to be inside to know how everything worked; we included developers within the project and it worked well,” he adds.
It is, then, nearly 20 years specializing in data protection, at a time when the world is increasingly connected, where social networks reign, and the boundaries of privacy are increasingly blurred for the user. However, the law is clear and, although not directly perceived, it reaches everything. “To Facebook, to Instagram, to the data in Microsoft’s cloud…; everything has to be perfectly legalized and protected,” Liarte reminds.
For example, if someone wants to create their own personal website, they must comply with the data protection law with, for example, cookies. The user must be informed of the type of cookie and it is up to the user to decide whether to accept or reject them, but the user must always be informed. Something that also happens when contact details are requested, reminds this expert.
“Data protection is a law that has to be visible, it should not be hidden; if you enter a website, cookies have to appear to accept or deny them and, if you enter a contact or a web form, the privacy conditions have to be accepted, you have to be updated,” he insists.
In that sense, and asked if companies and micro-enterprises are usually aware of what this regulation implies, he is clear: “Literally, no”. “They have no idea of the sanction that could come their way if they do not comply with it, if they are denounced by an employee or the competition, or if they screw up something very serious and it reaches the ears of the data protection agency,” he asserts. In this regard, the regulation provides for fines ranging from 2% to 4% of gross turnover, in euros, depending on the type of infringement.
A seal that certifies good compliance
In view of this, Jeva offers its clients a service that enables them to comply with all legal requirements related to data. Recently, for example, they have launched a privacy seal that makes it clear that everything concerning this law “is done in a correct way and always guaranteeing the brand standards”.
“For this purpose, we have created a web application, where our partners (about 60) are connected nationwide. And, taking our system as a basis, they implement the Organic Law on Data Protection and Guarantee of Digital Rights (LOGPDD-GDD) for their clients, with the standards that our brand has set, and all of this with the seal of quality that we have launched,” he says.
Proof of the transparency of their work is that, at Jeva, they allow their clients to access the platform so they can see what they have done. “We want them to have access so that they can see it, in case something is missing, and, of course, we visit them periodically every year and draw up a report so that the client is aware of what has been implemented so far, and we inform them of the deficiencies they have in order to finish complying with the regulations,” he explains.
In this sense, they also operate as a data protection delegate, a figure that includes the latest regulations and who is dedicated to ensuring that the company complies with the requirements of the legal text.
Beyond data protection
Although data protection is the area for which Jeva stands out, in reality this brand offers small businesses “everything they need to be secured in the technological field”. “From a simple computer to a complex network, servers in the cloud, protecting your data with firewall and VPN, regulatory compliance on the subject of data protection… We specialize in giving the client an ‘ad hoc’ service, everyone is given what they need,” says its CEO.
For example, Jeva offers a CRM adapted to small businesses. This software includes “a very complete customer-supplier management, time and attendance control for time recording, an employee portal with vacation management, per diems, employee mileage, payroll delivery and department management”. Everything, developed by the professionals of this Aragonese company.
Now, 25 years after Jeva’s first steps, Liarte thinks about how the technological environment has changed for companies. “Now computers fail less (he laughs) and everything has been invented”. As a result, he reflects on the functions they can offer their clients: “Let’s say that you have to dedicate yourself to knowing what you have to implement for each client, rather than thinking about what needs to be done.”
