THE WHITE ALERT SOLUTION
Compliance must be a priority for all companies. The implementation of a secure alert portal allows employees, clients and stakeholders to report anonymously, efficiently and reliably any violations that may be committed within your organisation.
With White Alert, companies meet international standards, while benefiting from a powerful tool that enhances their brand image and improves the well-being of employees who feel protected, listened to and valued.
Maximum data security
To ensure the anonymity of the whistleblower and data privacy, the White Alert platform has been designed to respond optimally to data protection rules. When an alert is placed on the White Alert platform, only those authorised and covered by the law firm Ayache’s professional secrecy can access the reported data. In addition, the various White Alert servers are hosted in France, within the infrastructure of OVH, the European leader in web hosting.
Ease of use
The user interfaces are designed to be easy to use and thus to encourage their use by the company’s internal and external audiences.
Immediate availability, 24/7 service
White Alert is a Software as a Service (SaaS) platform, which does not require any installation within the company, allowing almost instant deployment and immediate availability of the service. Once it has been started up, the whistleblowing platform is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for reports in French and English.
A real-time vision for the client company
Thanks to its privileged access, the internal point of contact of the client company will have access to a reporting tool and will thus be able to follow the processing status of an alert. .
Adaptable solution
The White Alert solution is particularly adaptable and responds to the needs of all companies, from SMEs operating locally to a multinational implanted worldwide. The technical solution is robust and scalable, and the multi-disciplinary approach of Ayache’s authorised lawyers makes it possible to deal with all types of alerts that companies can encounter: corruption, harassment, ecology, etc.
BENEFITS
Anticipate your risks
A tool for preventing the risk of litigation and criminal prosecution: detecting and addressing hazards at an early stage minimises the risk of reputational harm, sanctions and financial penalties.
Optimised management of the criminal risk associated with the exploitation of the sensitive data of an alert, through a secure platform managed by lawyers bound by professional secrecy.
A highly secure collection and centralisation tool of the company’s potentially most sensitive information.
Save time
The turnkey White Alert solution allows for immediate implementation of the platform, for the company’s instant compliance.
Minimise your costs
The proposed solution is directly operational and does not require any investment and installation costs. No need to train staff on the legal precautions regarding the handling of the alert and crisis management, everything is managed by Ayache’s authorised lawyers.
Delegate with peace of mind
White Alert brings its clients peace of mind, helping them to comply with the obligations of the Sapin II law, detecting potential risks to which they are exposed and dealing with them with the full professionalism of a rigorous law firm.
White Alert is the guarantee that your alerts are handled quickly and efficiently by specialised lawyers who are bound by professional secrecy.
Enhance your brand image
Having a whistleblower platform means improving your compliance, demonstrating your commitment to transparency and making progress in your market. It also means protecting company’s reputation by preventing highly sensitive information from being disseminated, thanks to a system guaranteeing the confidentiality of the whistleblower’s identity and the content of the report.
Promote the well-being of your employees
The whistleblower brings peace of mind because anonymity is ensured, on the one hand, by a technical solution that meets all data-security standards, and on the other hand, by the professional secrecy of the lawyers.
White Alert promotes well-being, as the employee is encouraged to share what is not compliant.
It is also a service that facilitates the work of the internal point of contact, since he/she will only receive relevant information – legal status and recommendations – on qualified alerts.
THE REGULATIONS
As of 1 January 2018, the law has required French organisations with more than 50 employees to implement a professional whistleblowing procedure. Through this regulation, France is meeting international standards in terms of compliance. There are many legal obligations and many of them are subject to criminal sanctions.
Thanks to the White Alert solution, companies have a system that fully meets CNIL (the French National Commission for Data Protection and Liberties) requirements on the whistleblowing procedure (data protection, secure connection, notification system, etc.), avoids legal obligations relating to the implementation of an alert system and minimises the occurrence of offences that are subject to criminal sanctions.
Legal obligations to set up an alert system:
Effective date: 1 January 2018
Companies concerned: Private or public companies with > 50 employees
Type of alerts:
- Any crime or offence
Any serious and manifest breach of the law, a regulation or international commitment
Any threat or serious damage to the public interest
Type of system: Open to employees and external and casual staff
Sanctions: In the absence of a mechanism put in place by the company, the whistleblower may report directly to the authorities or the public. Risk of serious damage to image.
Effective date: 1 June 2017
Companies concerned: Private or public companies with > 500 employees and> 100 million euros annual turnover(As well as their overseas subsidiaries)
Type of alert: any violation of the internal code of conduct relating to acts of corruption and influence peddling
Type of system: Open to employees
Sanctions: Avertissement ; Warning; injunction or fine of up to 200,000 euros (individuals) or 1,000,000 euros (legal entities)
Effective date: 1st financial period 2018
Companies concerned: Limited Companies (French “Société Anonyme”) (or Simplified Limited Companies, French “SAS”) with >5000 employees in their offices and in their subsidiaries with their head office in France, > 10,000 employees in their offices and in their subsidiaries with their head office in France or abroad
Type of alert: any serious harm.
- To human rights and fundamental freedoms
- To the health and safety of persons
- To the environment
Type of system: No legal details regarding potential users
Sanctions: Formal notice; injunction; compensation for damage caused by failure to comply with obligations (1240 and 1241 of the French Civil Code)
Entry into force: transposition in France must take place before December 2021
Companies concerned: + 50 employees
Type of alert: the Directive’s provisions deal with the protection of the whistleblower which applies only to reporting wrongdoing under European Community law, such as tax fraud, money laundering or public procurement offences, product and road safety, environmental protection, public health and consumer and data protection (the EU encourages local regulators to extend this scope into their legislation)
Type of system: Open to employees, job applicants, former employees, people who support the whistleblower and journalists
Sanctions: Companies that obstruct or attempt to obstruct the reporting of abuse must face penalties. The same applies if companies do not treat the identity of whistleblowers with confidentiality. Any retaliation measures against whistleblowers will also be sanctioned. It is up to local regulators to determine the degree of these sanctions.
Effective date: 1 January 2019
Companies concerned: + 250 employees
Type of alerts: sexual harassment and sexist actions
Type of system: a first point of contact has an advisory role and the second is appointed from the members of the “CSE” (Economic and Social Committee) to monitor the alert.
Obligations subject to criminal sanctions:
Possible scenarios:
- A manager receives an alert and discloses the content and/or name of the implicated party
- The internal recipient who is not trained in secrecy talks about it without malice
Sanctions: 2 years in prison and a €30,000 fine for individuals (€150,000 fine for legal entities)
Risk of occurrence: High
Possible scenarios:
The recipient is involved in the facts reported and does not disclose the alert
Internal procedures are non-existent or faulty
A manager wants to avoid a dispute involving the company or an attack on its image and stifles the case
Sanctions: 1 year in prison and a €15,000 fine for individuals (€75,000 fine for legal entities)
Risk of occurrence: Very high
Possible scenarios: Attack by the Respondent finally cleared
Sanctions: €12,000 fine, public posting and additional penalties (individuals)
Risk of occurrence: High
Possible scenarios: Failure to set up the Sapin II law alert system, Article 8
Sanctions: 1 year in prison – €15,000 fine for individuals (€75,000 euro for legal entities)
Risk of occurrence: Very high
Possible scenarios:Breach of Sapin II law, Article 17
Sanctions: €200,000 fine for individuals (€1,000,000 for legal entities)
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