Tag: guidance

ICO releases Guidance on Video Surveillance

7. March 2022

At the end of February 2022, The UK Information Commissioners’ Office (ICO) published a guidance for organizations that capture CCTVs footage in order to provide advice for when they operate video surveillance systems that view or record individuals.

The recommendations aim to focus on best practices for data activities related to “emerging capabilities that can assist human decision making, such as the use of Facial Recognition Technology and machine learning algorithms.” As per the Guidance, surveillance systems specifically include traditional CCTV, Automatic Number Plate Recognition, Body Worn Video, Drones, Facial Recognition Technology, dashcams and smart doorbell cameras.

In their Guidance, the ICO offers checklists with points that controllers can use in order to monitor their use of video surveillance and keep track of their compliance with the applicable law. It further touches on the principles of data protection and how they specifically apply to video surveillance. In addition, it helps companies with the documentation of a Data Processing Impact Assessment.

The Guidance gives in depth advice on video surveillance at the workplace as well as if video feeds should also record audio.

Overall, the Guidance aims to sensibilize controllers regarding the various issues faced with when using video surveillance, and gives them in depth help on what to do to be compliant with the data protection regulations in the UK.

EDPB released a new Guidance on Virtual Voice Assistants

31. March 2021

In recent years, Virtual Voice Assistants (VVA) have enjoyed increased popularity among technophile consumers. VVAs are integrated in modern smartphones like Siri on Apple or Google Assistant on Android mobile devices, but can also be found in seperate terminal devices like Alexa on the Amazon Echo device. With Smart Homes trending, VVAs are finding their ways into many homes.

However, in light of their general mode of operation and their specific usage, VVAs potentially have access to a large amount of personal data. They furthermore use new technologies such as machine learning and artificial intelligence in order to improve their services.

As both private households and corporate businesses are increasingly using VVAs and questions on data protection arise, the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) sought to provide guidance to the relevant data controllers. Therefore, the EDPB published a guidance on Virtual Voice Assistants earlier this month.

In its guidance, the EDPB specifically addresses VVA providers and VVA application developers. It encourages them to take considerations of data protection into account when designing their VVA service, as layed out by the principle of data protection by design and default under Art. 25 GDPR. The EDPB suggests that, for example, controllers could fulfil their information obligations pursuant to Art. 13/14 GDPR using voice based notifications if the VVA works with a screenless terminal device. VVA designers could also enable users to initiate a data subject request though easy-to-follow voice commands.

Moreover, the EDPB states that in their opinion, providing VVA services will require a Data Protection Impact Assessment according to Art. 35 GDPR. The guidance also gives further advice on complying with general data protection principles and is still open for public consultation until 23 April 2021.

Belgian DPA releases Guidance and FAQs on Cookies and Trackers

23. April 2020

On Thursday, April 9th 2020, the Belgian Data Protection Authority (Belgian DPA) has issued a guidance along with frequently asked question on the subject of cookies and other tracking technologies.

The key points presented by the guidance revolve around the definitions of cookies, what needs to be presented in a cookie policy, how the consent of data subjects needs to be obtained and which requirements it needs to fulfill, as well as the storage period of a cookie on a user’s device.

The Belgian DPA made it clear that of the utmost importance is the transparency of the cookie usage. That entails that the users need to be informed about the scope of each individual cookie used. This should be done through a cookie policy on the website. The cookie policy needs to be written in a language the targeted users of the website can understand, as well as be easily accessible, e.g. through a hyperlink.

Specifically, these cookie policies need to include and inform about:

  • identification of the cookies used;
  • their purposes and duration;
  • whether third-parties have access to such cookies;
  • information about how to delete cookies;
  • the legal basis relied upon for the use of cookies;
  • information about individuals’ data protection rights and the ability to lodge a complaint to the competent data protection authority;
  • information about any automated decision making, including profiling.

In order to be able to use cookies, the consent of the user needs to be obtained. The Belgian DPA stated in their guidance that the consent has to be obtained for the use of all non-essential cookies, which means all cookies that are not necessary for a user requested function of the website. A necessary cookie would be, for example, the cookie to remember the item in a user’s cart, or cookies that enable booking communication with a user.

The consent especially needs to be:

  • obtained for the use of all non-essential cookies, as well as all social media plugins;
  • informed, specifically, prior to giving their consent to the use of cookies, users must be provided with information regarding the use of cookies: The information that needs to be given to the data subjects are the entity responsible for the use of cookies, the cookies’ purposes,  the data collected through the use of cookies, and their expiration. Users must also be informed about their rights with respect to cookies, including the right to withdraw their consent;
  • granulated, whereas in a first instance, users need to decide between what types of cookies they want to give consent to, and in a second instance, users can decide exactly which cookies they want to give consent to;
  • unambiguous and provided through a clear affirmative action.

Further, it is also important to keep in mind that the Belgian DPA has confirmed that cookie walls are unlawful, and that companies must show proof of obtained consent through keeping logs.

The Belgian DPA has also given guidance on the lifespan of cookies. Cookies should not have unlimited lifespans, but rather follow basic data protection rules: once a cookie is no longer necessary for the purpose or it has fulfilled its determined purpose, it needs to be removed. If the cookie cannot be deleted from the controller’s side, it is important to give the users the information on how to do it themselves.

Overall, the Belgian DPA’s guidance has given controllers a clear way to maneuvering their cookie usage, and has provided a new list of FAQs in case of further questions. In this regard, the Belgian DPA has made sure that cookies and their use are easy to comprehend and handle, hopefully helping data protection compliance within the subject.

CNIL publishes new Guidance on Teleworking

14. April 2020

The French Data Protection Authority (CNIL) has released a guidance on teleworking on April 1st, which is intended to help employers master the new working situation. In particular, it is supposed to bring clarity on the IT requirements in order to ensure a safe and well-functioning remote working environment.

In particular, the guidance touches on these following points to form a basis for coping with teleworking from an employer’s perspective:

  • It is recommended that employers formulate an IT Charter or internal regulation on how to use the teleworking systems which are to be followed by the employees,
  • Necessary measures have to be taken in case the systems have to be changed or adapted to the new situation,
  • It should be ensured that employee work stations have the minimum requirements of a firewall, anti-virus software and a tool blocking access to malicious websites,
  • To keep from being exposed on the internet and ensure security, a VPN is recommended to be put in use.

Furthermore, the CNIL has also given guidance on the cases where an organization’s services are mainly performed over the internet. In such cases, it recommended to follow a few necessary requirements in order to make sure the services can be delivered safely and smoothly:

  • Web protocols that guarantee confidentiality and authentication of the processes (such as https and sftp), and keeping them up to date,
  • Double factor authentication,
  • No access to interfaces of non-secure servers,
  • Reviewing logs of access to remotely accessible services to detect suspicious behaviors,
  • Ensuring that the used equipment follows latest security patches.

The CNIL also offered some best practices for employees to follow in cases of working remotely, to give both sides pointers on how to deal with the changing situation.

Specifically, employees are being recommended to ensure their WIFI is secure by using encryption such as WPA 2 or WPA 3, along with a secure password. In addition, the CNIL recommends work equipment given by the employer, as well as using a VPN provided by the company. In the case of using own devices, a firewall and an anti-virus software are the necessary requirements to ensure security of the equipment, as well as updating the operating system and software to the newest patches.

Lastly, the CNIL warns of increased phishing attempts in relation to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Overall, the guidance and best practices the CNIL has published indicate a need for continuous and active vigilance in regards to teleworking, as well as the sharing of personal data in the process.

This guidance is in line with our past assessment of the remote working situation, which you are welcome to check out in the respective blogpost in our Series on Data Protection and Corona.

Greek Data Protection Authority releases Guidance on Cookies

16. March 2020

On 25 February 2020, the Hellenic Data Protection Authority (DPA) published a guidance on Cookies and other tracking tools. Previously, the Authority had found that Greek websites and service providers have been largely failing to comply with the rules on the use of Cookies and other trackers set out by the ePrivacy Directive and the GDPR, and reaffirmed by the European Court of Justice’s ruling on Planet 49.

The guidance states that it will be relevant to HTTP/S Cookies, Flash Cookies, local storage applying to HTML 5, device fingerprinting, OS identifiers, and material identifiers.

The Greek DPA reiterated that, generally, providers are obliged to obtain the user’s consent if they are using any tracking tools – irrespective of whether the processing of personal data is taking place. It also outlined that technically necessary trackers are exempt from the obligation to consent. Furthermore, the guidance goes into detail on how information and consent can be made available on websites specifically.

Lastly, the Authority has given Greek website providers a grace period of two months to implement the provisions of this guidance and thereby become compliant with the European rules on tracking tools.

Irish DPC updates Guidance on Data Processing’s Legal Bases

17. December 2019

The Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC) has updated their guidance on the legal bases for personal data processing. It focuses on data processing under the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) as well as data processing requirements under the European Law Enforcement Directive.

The main points of the updates to the guidance are to make companies more sensitive of their reasons for processing personal data and choosing the right legal basis, as well as ensure that data subjects may be able to figure out if their data is being processed lawfully.

The guidance focuses on the different legal bases in Art.6 GDPR, namely consent, contracts, legal obligation, vital interests, public task or legitimate interests. The Irish DPC states that controllers do not only have to choose the right legal basis, but they also have to understand the obligations that come with the chosen one, which is why they wanted to go into further detail.

Overall, the guidance is made to aid both controllers and data subjects. It consists of a way to support a better understanding of the terminology, as well as the legal requirements the GDPR sets out for processing personal data.

CNIL publishes guidance on data sharing

18. January 2019

At the end of last year, the French Data Protection Authority (“Commission Nationale de l’Informatique et des Libertés”, the “CNIL”) published guidance on sharing data with business partners or third parties. The CNIL stated that many companies that collect data from individuals transfer this data to “business partners” or other organisations especially to send prospecting emails. In case of a transmission the data subjects must maintain control over their personal data .

The published guidance state the following five requirements:

• Prior consent: Before sharing data with business partners or third parties such as data brokers, organisations must request the individual’s consent.

• Identification of the partners: The individuals must be informed of the specific partner(s) who may receive the data. According to the CNIL’s guidance, the organisation can either publish a complete and updated list containing the organisation’s partners directly on the data collection form or if such a list would be too long, it can integrate a link to the collection form. This should be inserted together with a link to their respective privacy policies.

• Information of changes to the list of partners: The organisations have to notify the individuals of any changes to the list of partners, especially if they may share the data with new partners. Therefore, they may provide an updated list of their partners within each marketing message sent to the individual and each new partner that receives the individual’s data must inform him or her of such processing in its first communication to the data subject.

• No “transfer” of the consent: Companies may not share the information they receive with their own partners without obtaining the consent of individuals, in particular with regard to the identity of new companies that would become recipients of the subject’s data.

• Information to be provided by the partner(s): The partner who received the individual’s data for their own marketing purposes must inform the data subject of the origin (name of the organisation who shared the data with them) and inform them of their data subject rights, in particular the right to object to the processing.

Category: EU · French DPA
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