Building Awareness of Personal Data Protection Across the Group

To strengthen awareness of personal data protection responsibilities across the Group, the Group Internal Audit Division recently conducted a UAE Personal Data Protection Law (PDPL) awareness session for the Human Capital Division (HCD), under the sponsorship and guidance of Mr. Muhammad Khalid Mustafa, Group Chief Internal Audit Officer.

HCD was selected as the starting point for this initiative due to its role in managing significant volumes of employee and candidate information. The session focused on practical workplace scenarios, interactive discussions and real-life examples designed to help participants identify personal data, understand their responsibilities under the UAE Personal Data Protection Law and apply appropriate data-handling practices in their day-to-day activities.

The awareness session forms part of the Group’s broader efforts to promote responsible data protection practices and strengthen understanding of privacy obligations across the organization.
Addressing participants during the session, Mr. Ankit Sharma – IT Audit Manager emphasized that many privacy incidents result from everyday actions rather than deliberate misconduct.

“The question is not ‘Can i shore this? but who genuinely needs it?. Our objective is not to create additionat bureaucracy, but to help employees make informed decisions about what information should be collected, shared, retained and when concerns should be escalated.”

The session also highlighted the importance of protecting personal information throughout its lifecycle and ensuring that data is accessed, used and shared only where there is a legitimate business need.

The UAE Personal Data Protection Law places clear obligations on organizations that collect and process personal information, For Juma Al Majid Holding Group, safeguarding personal data is not only a regulatory requirement, but also an important part of maintaining the trust placed in the Group by its employees, cus-tomers, business partners and other stakeholders.

The session concluded with a reminder that protecting personal information is a shared responsibility across the organization. While business units remain responsible for the data they manage, effective data protection requires collaboration between data owners, supporting functions and employees at every level.

As the Group continues to strengthen its data protection and privacy practices, further awareness initiatives will be undertaken to help embed a culture of accountability, responsible information handling and compliance across the organization.