Legal limits on collecting customer information

This topic describes best practices and legal limits for collecting customer information.

Store Manager and POS allow you to collect basic information about your store's customers, such as name, address, telephone number, fax number, and email address. You can also customize Store Manager and POS to collect customer information that is unique to your store's products, services, or relationship-building strategy. For example:

• For a pet store, you might collect information about the type of pets the customer has, the number of pets, the names of their pets, and their pets' dietary or grooming needs;

• For an automotive store, you might collect information about the customer's vehicle, such as the make, model, year, color, and distinguishing features such as whether it is a special edition or has any customizations; or

• For a specialty liquor store, you might collect information about the customer's preferred beverages, the quantities they like to order, and whether they want to be notified of promotions or special events such as a Scotch whisky tasting or the annual Bordeaux wine release.

Before you collect any customer information you should make sure you understand the legal regulations in your state or country for the collection, use, and safe storage of a customer's personal information. For example, local laws may control:

• Whether you must get consent from customers to collect their information;

• What kind of information you can or cannot reasonably collect about your customers;

• How you can or cannot reasonably use that customer information;

• Whether you can share a customer's information with third parties, such as mass communication agencies;

• Whether customers can opt out of information collection or withdraw consent to use their information; or

• What steps you must take to safely store or prevent access to customer information.

It is particularly important that you safely store and prevent access to customer information. If there is a breach of your systems that exposes customer information, there can be legal repercussions for your store. Remediation of the breach can also be very time-consuming and costly. Ensure your computers and networks have adequate intrusion protection, and consider purchasing cyber risk and data breach insurance coverage.