GDPR: 5 Mistakes to Avoid with Your Data Collection Forms

Are your data collection forms truly GDPR compliant? According to a CNIL study, 78% of French websites have at least one non-compliance issue on their forms. And penalties are being issued: in 2024, more than 89 million euros in fines were distributed across Europe for data collection violations.

The problem: most companies make the same mistakes. Avoidable mistakes that unnecessarily expose their business. Here are the 5 most common ones and how to fix them concretely.

Mistake #1: Pre-Checked Boxes and Implicit Consent

This is the most widespread mistake. And the most penalized.

Why It’s Illegal

GDPR requires consent to be “freely given, specific, informed, and unambiguous.” A pre-checked box meets none of these criteria. The user must take positive action to give their consent.

The Court of Justice of the European Union confirmed this in the Planet49 ruling: silence or inaction does not constitute valid consent.

Practices to Ban Immediately

• Newsletter subscription boxes checked by default
• Global consent for multiple different purposes
• Ambiguous wording like “By clicking, you accept everything”
• No real choice (accept or leave the site)

How to Fix It

Each processing purpose requires a separate, unchecked box:

• One box for receiving the newsletter
• A separate box for partner offers
• A box for commercial communications

With Skedox, your forms natively include compliant consent boxes. It’s impossible to publish a form with a pre-checked box: the system automatically blocks it.

Mistake #2: Missing Legal Notices on the Form

A form without legal notices is like a contract without fine print. Except here, the fine print is mandatory.

What GDPR Requires

Article 13 of GDPR requires informing the person at the time of collection. Mandatory information includes:

• Data controller identity: who is collecting the data?
• Purpose: why are you collecting this information?
• Legal basis: on what legal grounds?
• Recipients: who will have access to the data?
• Retention period: how long do you keep the data?
• Individual rights: access, rectification, erasure, objection
• DPO contact: if you have one designated

The Common Mistake

Many companies refer to their privacy policy without providing any information on the form itself. This is not sufficient.

The visitor must understand the essentials without leaving the page. The link to the full policy remains necessary, but not sufficient.

Practical Solution

Add a summary notice under your form:

“Your data is processed by [Company] to respond to your request. It is retained for 3 years. You can exercise your rights of access, rectification, and deletion via [email protected]. [Full privacy policy]”

This notice takes 3 lines and puts you in compliance.

Mistake #3: Collecting Too Much Data (Or the Wrong Data)

GDPR introduces the principle of minimization: only collect what is strictly necessary.

Fields That Cause Problems

How many times have you seen a contact form asking for:

• Date of birth
• Mandatory phone number
• Full postal address
• Title
• Profession

For a simple contact message, only the email and message are truly necessary. First name can be justified to personalize the response. Everything else is superfluous.

The Risks of Over-Collection

• GDPR penalties: up to 4% of revenue for non-compliance with minimization
• Form abandonment: 67% of users abandon a form that’s too long
• Increased liability: more data = more risks in case of a breach

How to Apply Minimization

For each field, ask yourself: “Do I really need this information to process this request?”

If the answer is no, remove the field.

Example for a contact form:

Field	Necessary?	Justification
Email	Yes	To respond
Message	Yes	Subject of the request
First name	Optional	Personalization
Phone	No	Unless phone callback offered
Company	No	Unless specific B2B context

Skedox helps you create streamlined forms. Our templates are designed to collect only the essentials, with fields pre-configured according to the chosen purpose.

Mistake #4: Neglecting Collected Data Security

Collecting data also means protecting it. GDPR requires “appropriate technical and organizational measures.”

Common Security Flaws on Data Collection Forms

Unsecured Transmission

Does your form send data over HTTPS? In 2025, this is a minimum. Yet 12% of web forms still transmit data in clear text.

Vulnerable Storage

Where do submitted data end up?

• In a shared email inbox?
• In a spreadsheet accessible to everyone?
• In an unencrypted database?

Lack of Access Control

Who can view received forms? If “everyone in the company” is the answer, you have a problem.

Essential Security Measures

• Encryption in transit: HTTPS mandatory on all your forms
• Encryption at rest: data stored encrypted
• Access management: only authorized persons access the data
• Logging: traceability of access and modifications
• Secure backup: recovery plan in case of incident

The Cost of a Data Breach

Beyond GDPR fines (up to 20 million euros), a data breach costs an average of $4.45 million per incident according to IBM. Not to mention irreparable loss of trust.

Mistake #5: Ignoring Individual Rights

Collecting data creates obligations. Data subjects have rights, and you must be able to respond to them.

Rights You Must Respect

• Right of access: provide a copy of all data held
• Right to rectification: correct inaccurate data
• Right to erasure: delete data on request
• Right to portability: transmit data in a readable format
• Right to object: cease processing on simple request
• Right to withdraw consent: at any time

Classic Mistakes

No Established Procedure

Someone asks for their data by email. What do you do? If you don’t know, that’s a problem.

Deadlines Not Met

GDPR requires a response within 30 days (extendable to 60 in certain cases). Many companies exceed this deadline due to lack of organization.

Incomplete Deletion

Deleting a contact from your newsletter but keeping them in 5 other databases is not valid erasure. Deletion must be complete.

How to Effectively Manage Requests

Set up a clear process:

1. Identified contact point: dedicated email ([email protected] or [email protected])
2. Identity verification: confirm the requester is indeed the data subject
3. Centralized processing: a single tool to manage all requests
4. Documentation: keep a record of each processed request

With Skedox, each contact has a centralized profile. Export, modification, deletion: everything is done in a few clicks. GDPR requests become a formality, not a source of stress.

How to Audit Your Current Data Collection Forms

Before fixing, you need to identify. Here’s a checklist to audit your existing forms.

GDPR Compliance Checklist for Your Forms

Consent:

• No pre-checked boxes
• One box per distinct purpose
• Clear and understandable wording
• Ability to refuse without consequence

Information:

• Controller identity visible
• Processing purpose explained
• Retention period indicated
• Individual rights mentioned
• Link to privacy policy

Minimization:

• Only necessary fields present
• Optional fields clearly identified
• No sensitive data collection without justification

Security:

• HTTPS transmission
• Secure data storage
• Access restricted to authorized persons

Rights:

• Documented request handling procedure
• Response time under 30 days
• Technical capability to export/delete data

Real Penalties for Non-Compliance

GDPR fines are not theoretical. Some recent examples:

• Criteo: 40 million euros (2023) for consent failures
• Microsoft Ireland: 20 million euros (2022) for collecting children’s data
• Clearview AI: 20 million euros (2022) for unlawful processing of biometric data

On a smaller scale, SMEs regularly receive warnings and formal notices. CNIL issued more than 200 penalties in 2024, across all sectors.

Conclusion: Avoid These GDPR Mistakes on Your Data Collection Forms

The 5 GDPR mistakes to avoid on your data collection forms:

1. Pre-checked boxes: require positive action from the user
2. Missing legal notices: inform at the time of collection
3. Over-collection of data: apply the minimization principle
4. Neglected security: protect the data you collect
5. Ignored individual rights: organize to respond to requests

GDPR compliance is not optional. It’s a legal obligation, but also a competitive advantage. Transparent companies inspire trust. Respectful forms convert better.

Ready to make your forms compliant? Try Skedox for free and create GDPR-compliant data collection forms in minutes. Consent, legal notices, security: everything is built-in by default.