The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) will automatically come into force across the EU on 25 May 2018. As the deadline fast approaches, Member States are busy progressing their draft implementing legislation. Article 23 of the GDPR provides Member States with discretion over how certain provisions will apply. These proposed derogations to the GDPR have been a focus point for many commentators on the draft national legislation.
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News reports have confirmed that on Wednesday 26 July, after a public consultation period on the issue, the Irish Government have agreed to set the digital age of consent at 13 years of age. Article 8 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) provides that a child under the age of 16 cannot consent to
On 26 July 2017 the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) delivered its Opinion that the draft Passenger Name Record (PNR) Agreement between the EU and Canada is not compatible with the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights (the Charter) and may not be concluded in its current form. The Opinion follows a referral by the European Parliament to the CJEU and is the first time the Court has been requested to examine the compatibility of an international agreement with the EU Charter.
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The UK Information Commissioners Office (the ICO) has released an International Strategy (the Strategy) in which it outlines its plans for 2017 – 2021 to deal with the data protection challenges presented by globalism, the GDPR and Brexit. The Strategy which can be read in full here is the first with an international emphasis released
The UK Information Commissioner’s Office (the ICO) has ruled that Virgin Trains East Coast (Virgin) did not break data protection law when it published CCTV images of the UK’s Labour party leader, Jeremy Corbyn. Virgin released the footage last year following Mr Corbyn’s comments that a Virgin train he was travelling on
The Article 29 Working Party (WP29) has recently provided its Opinion 2/2017 on data processing at work. The Opinion, adopted on 8 June 2017, highlights the risks and challenges of processing employees’ personal data in light of new technologies. While the Opinion focuses on the current data protection regime, it also considers some of the obligations arising under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) from 25 May 2018.
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In advance of the forthcoming Dáil elections, the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC) has issued guidance to candidates for election and their representatives on canvassing, data protection and electronic marketing (the Guidance). Publication of the Guidance follows the ODPC’s previous efforts to boost awareness of individuals’ privacy rights in this
In Barbulescu v Romania, a case concerning employees’ right to privacy, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) held that an employer could monitor and access personal messages sent by an employee during work hours from his Yahoo Messenger account. The decision, however, is not a precedent for unrestricted monitoring by employers of personal messages sent by employees during office hours.
On 7 December 2015, the EU Council reached an informal agreement with the EU Parliament on the draft Network and Information Security (NIS) Directive.The draft Directive sets out cybersecurity obligations for operators of essential services in the healthcare, banking, energy and transport sectors, and also digital service providers (including e-commerce platforms, search engines, social networks, internet payment gateways, and cloud services). These operators will be required to take measures to manage cyber risks and report major security incidents.
In its ongoing effort to raise awareness of individuals’ privacy rights, the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC) has published a press release on their website on the "Electoral Register and ‘Opting Out’ of the Edited Register".
Every year, the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government encourages individuals to register to vote or to check that their details are up to date on the Electoral Register in advance of the 25 November deadline. In line with publicising such rights, the ODPC wishes to draw attention to the Edited Electoral Register and how it relates to direct marketing.