GDPR is real. GDPR is global. GDPR preparedness is now. With the May 25, 2018 deadline for compliance fast approaching, companies around the world are faced with a variety of decisions on how to mitigate the business risk that the GDPR poses. It represents the biggest change to EU data protection and privacy legislation in the past three decades. This brief provides an introduction to the main characteristics of the General Data Protection Regulation, and proposes technologies companies should consider in their compliance activities. It concludes with several action points that provide guidance on essential elements of a GDPR compliance program.