What is GDPR?
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is the European Union’s comprehensive data protection law that governs how organizations collect, process, store, and transfer personal data of EU residents. GDPR applies to any organization worldwide that processes data of EU residents, regardless of where the organization is based.
GDPR violations can result in fines up to €20 million or 4% of global annual revenue, whichever is higher. Beyond fines, enforcement actions damage brand reputation and customer trust. High-profile cases have resulted in hundreds of millions of euros in penalties.
Who Needs GDPR Compliance?
- Any organization processing personal data of EU residents
- E-commerce sites selling to European customers
- SaaS platforms with European users
- Mobile apps available in EU app stores
- Marketing platforms collecting EU visitor data
- Any website accessible from the EU that collects personal data
How Expedited WAF Helps with GDPR
GDPR Article 32 requires “appropriate technical and organizational measures” to ensure security appropriate to the risk. Expedited WAF provides the technical measures that demonstrate compliance.
Article 32: Security of Processing
GDPR requires implementing appropriate technical measures including encryption, confidentiality, integrity, availability, and resilience of processing systems.
How Expedited WAF helps:
Encryption
- Enforces TLS 1.2+ for all data in transit
- Forces HTTPS for all connections
- Prevents unencrypted transmission of personal data
- Configures security headers including HSTS
Confidentiality
- IP blocking restricts unauthorized access
- Geo-blocking limits data access by region
- Bot detection prevents automated data scraping
- Anonymous proxy blocking stops access circumvention
Integrity
- Protection against OWASP Top 10 attacks that could modify data
- SQL injection blocking prevents database tampering
- Input validation prevents malicious data modification
Availability
- DDoS protection ensures system availability
- Rate limiting prevents resource exhaustion
- Traffic filtering maintains service performance
TLS Requirements: GDPR requires “appropriate technical measures”—TLS 1.2+ is the accepted standard. See our TLS configuration guide.
Article 25: Data Protection by Design and Default
GDPR requires implementing appropriate technical measures at the time of system design and by default.
How Expedited WAF helps:
- Security controls active from deployment
- Security headers configured by default
- HTTPS enforcement built-in
- Protection against common vulnerabilities without code changes
- Defense in depth regardless of application implementation
Article 33: Breach Notification
GDPR requires notifying supervisory authorities within 72 hours of becoming aware of a personal data breach.
How Expedited WAF helps:
- Comprehensive attack logging aids breach detection
- Real-time alerting on security events
- Forensic logging helps investigate incidents
- Attack pattern analysis identifies potential breaches
- Documentation supports breach assessment
Article 5(1)(f): Integrity and Confidentiality
GDPR requires processing personal data in a manner that ensures appropriate security, including protection against unauthorized or unlawful processing.
How Expedited WAF helps:
- Blocks attacks that could lead to unauthorized data access:
- SQL injection (database access)
- Broken access control (unauthorized records)
- Cross-site scripting (session hijacking)
- Credential stuffing (account takeover)
- Virtual patching for rapid vulnerability response
- Continuous protection against emerging threats
GDPR Technical Measures Mapping
| GDPR Requirement | Article | How Expedited WAF Helps |
|---|---|---|
| Encryption of personal data | Art. 32(1)(a) | TLS 1.2+ enforcement, HTTPS redirection |
| Confidentiality of processing | Art. 32(1)(b) | Access controls, bot blocking, proxy blocking |
| Integrity of processing | Art. 32(1)(b) | OWASP protection, injection blocking |
| Availability of processing | Art. 32(1)(b) | DDoS protection, rate limiting |
| Data protection by design | Art. 25(1) | Built-in security controls, secure defaults |
| Protection against unauthorized access | Art. 5(1)(f) | Comprehensive attack blocking |
GDPR Compliance Checklist for Heroku
Use this checklist to implement GDPR technical measures for your Heroku application:
Encryption (Article 32)
- Enable Expedited WAF for all applications processing EU personal data
- Enforce TLS 1.2+ - TLS configuration guide
- Enable HTTPS redirection - How to force HTTPS
- Configure HSTS headers - Security headers guide
Confidentiality
- Enable bot detection to prevent scraping - Bot blocking guide
- Block anonymous proxies - Proxy blocking guide
- Configure IP restrictions for sensitive endpoints - IP blocking guide
- Enable rate limiting to prevent bulk data access
Integrity
- Enable OWASP Top 10 protection - OWASP protection guide
- Enable virtual patching - Virtual patching guide
Availability
- Enable DDoS protection - DDoS protection guide
- Configure rate limiting to prevent resource exhaustion
Breach Detection
- Enable comprehensive logging for breach detection
- Configure security alerts for attack notifications
- Document security measures for accountability requirements
Data Transfers and Geographic Controls
If you need to restrict data processing to specific regions for GDPR compliance, Expedited WAF provides:
- Geo-blocking to restrict access by country
- Geographic logging to document access patterns
- IP-based access controls for regional restrictions
Related Resources
- TLS Requirements for GDPR
- OWASP Top 10 Protection on Heroku
- How to Force HTTPS on Heroku
- Security Headers on Heroku
- DDoS Protection
- Compliance Overview
Get Started
Implement GDPR technical measures for your Heroku application with Expedited WAF. Our platform provides the security controls that demonstrate “appropriate technical measures” to supervisory authorities.