One of the most celebrated meetings at Nubank is called TGIF (Thank God It’s Friday). In its sessions, analytics engineering teams unite weekly to brainstorm and develop projects that enhance our data user’s daily experiences. 

These sessions not only fostered a creative and autonomous work environmentーthey also resulted on the team’s first feature project: Software-driven Data Privacy. It was developed by a diverse team of Analytics Engineers, Software Engineers, and legal experts.

This multidisciplinary collaboration was vital for its success, considering the project’s complexity and significance. Read on to learn more!

Project overview

The essence of the project is to create a scalable and high-quality platform for customer data protection. This involves a full-stack software architecture that improves our capacity to manage customer data, ensuring both transparency and protection.

It’s a testament to our customer-centric approach, harmoniously blending customer needs with our technological capabilities.

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The role of legal understanding in data privacy

Our legal team’s input was crucial, especially in understanding the nuances of the General Data Protection Law (LGPD).

They provided essential background information on personal data concepts, sensitive data, and data treatment, guiding the technical aspects of the project.

Architectural design and data management

The architecture includes over 400 microservices, each with its database, and more than 60,000 datasets in the analytical environment. This complex structure demands robust and scalable solutions for data protection.

Central to our architecture is the Data Inventory, which coordinates metadata from Nubank’s databases and classifies data based on personal relevance, type, and purpose.

This system ensures that our data deletion and access report services are efficiently executed.

Development of a streamlit-powered GUI

Our team developed a graphical user interface (GUI) using Streamlit, a Python framework that removes the need for extensive knowledge in frontend languages, to facilitate sensitive data classification.

This GUI offers a user-friendly, responsive design accessible across devices, removing the need for tedious manual processes.

Features and functions of the GUI

The GUI includes several sections to aid the classification process. It begins with selecting the data source and provides metadata details like creation date, attribute descriptions, and tagging status.

The main application feature is the classification of each attribute, supported by automatic recommendations based on already classified data.

Enhancing productivity and efficiency

One of the GUI’s key achievements is the increase in productivity by 70% compared to previous methods.

It has proved to be an efficient and smart solution, aligning with our goals of efficient data classification.

Governance, privacy, and access control

Our approach to data governance and privacy involves not just technical solutions but also educating our engineers and understanding the legal context.

The project supports the development of specific metrics for privacy program maturity and strategy evolution. 

Moreover, we manage data access through a granular system, ensuring controlled access depending on the nature of the personal data.

Conclusion

Nubank’s TGIF sessions have not only fostered a culture of innovation and autonomy but have also paved the way for groundbreaking projects like Software Driven Data Privacy. This initiative highlights Nubank’s commitment to data governance and privacy, going beyond technical solutions to include the education of engineers and a deep understanding of legal frameworks.

The project’s success in enhancing productivity, ensuring robust data protection, and developing a customer-centric approach underscores Nubank’s position as a leader in the fintech industry. This journey of combining technology with legal expertise sets a new benchmark in data privacy solutions, illustrating how collaborative innovation can lead to transformative outcomes in the financial sector.

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