DPIAer

DPIAer is a term used in privacy governance to denote a professional who conducts Data Protection Impact Assessments, or DPIAs. A DPIAer evaluates processing activities to identify privacy risks to individuals and to determine mitigations that align with data protection laws such as the GDPR.

Responsibilities include leading DPIA projects, scoping the assessment, mapping data flows, inventorying datasets, and assessing the likelihood and severity of risks. They draft the DPIA report, propose safeguards such as data minimization and pseudonymization, and coordinate with the data protection officer, project teams, legal counsel, and, when required, supervisory authorities.

Qualifications vary by organization, but a DPIAer typically has knowledge of GDPR and privacy regimes, experience in information security or compliance, and skills in risk assessment and stakeholder communication. Professional credentials such as CIPP/E, CIPM, or privacy-focused trainings are common, though not universally mandated.

Methods and tools include structured DPIA templates, risk matrices, data flow diagrams, and threat modeling. DPIAer apply privacy by design principles and may implement technical measures such as encryption, access controls, retention policies, and data minimization to reduce residual risk.

Impact and scope: DPIAers work across sectors in corporations, consultancies, government bodies, and public agencies. While high-risk processing triggers duties to consult with a supervisory authority, many DPIAs are performed internally to support accountability and transparent privacy governance.

See also: Data Protection Impact Assessment, GDPR, Data protection officer, Privacy by design.