How Data Lineage helps in making the data compliant

Joy Maitra
3 min readJan 18, 2023

Data lineage can be classified into several types depending on the level of granularity and the level of detail that it captures. Some common types of data lineage include:

  1. Technical Data Lineage: This type of data lineage tracks the flow of data from its source to its final destination, including information about the systems, databases, and applications that are involved in the data flow. It also includes information about data mapping, data validation, and data transformation. Technical data lineage is important for understanding how data is transformed and for identifying potential data quality issues.
  2. Business Data Lineage: This type of data lineage tracks the flow of data from its source to its final destination, including information about the business processes and workflows that are involved in the data flow. It also includes information about data ownership, data stewardship, and data governance. Business data lineage is important for understanding the context and purpose of the data and for identifying potential data governance issues.
  3. Operational Data Lineage: This type of data lineage tracks the flow of data from its source to its final destination, including information about the systems, databases, and applications that are involved in the data flow, as well as information about data access, data usage, and data retention. Operational data lineage is important for understanding how data is used and for identifying potential data security and compliance issues.
  4. Historical Data Lineage: This type of data lineage tracks the flow of data from its source to its final destination over time, including information about data changes, data versions, and data retention. Historical data lineage is important for understanding the evolution of data over time and for identifying potential data quality issues.
  5. Functional Data Lineage: This type of data lineage tracks the flow of data from its source to its final destination, including information about the functions, methods, and algorithms that are used to transform the data. Functional data lineage is important for understanding how data is transformed and for identifying potential data quality issues.

Data lineage can play a critical role in helping organizations to implement and comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The GDPR is a regulation in the European Union (EU) that governs the protection and handling of personal data.

  1. Data Discovery: Data lineage provides a clear and detailed view of the data flow, data transformation, and data storage which can help organizations to discover where personal data is located and how it is being used. This can help organizations to identify and address potential GDPR compliance issues.
  2. Data Mapping: Data lineage provides a detailed view of the data flow, data transformation, and data storage, which can help organizations to map personal data to the GDPR requirements and identify any discrepancies.
  3. Data Retention: Data lineage provides information about data retention, which can help organizations to comply with GDPR requirements for data retention and erasure.
  4. Data Auditing: Data lineage provides information about data access, data usage, and data retention, which can be used for auditing purposes and for demonstrating compliance with GDPR requirements.
  5. Right to Access: Data lineage can help organizations to provide data subjects with access to their personal data, as required by GDPR.
  6. Data Governance: Data lineage is a critical aspect of data governance which helps organizations to ensure data quality, security, and compliance. By implementing data lineage, organizations can improve data-driven decision making, troubleshoot data issues, and comply with regulations and policies.

In summary, data lineage can be classified into several types depending on the level of granularity and the level of detail that it captures. Each type of data lineage is important for understanding different aspects of the data and for identifying different types of data-related issues, as data lineage can play a critical role in helping organizations to implement and comply with the GDPR. By providing a clear and detailed view of the data flow, data transformation, and data storage, data lineage can help organizations to discover, map, and retain personal data in compliance with GDPR requirements, and also to demonstrate compliance through auditing and providing data subjects with access to their personal data.

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Joy Maitra

I am a Data Practitioner, with experience in python.