2. Regulations on Data Protection

The course does not go over all the regulations, but provides the knowledge to carry out a data protection gap assessment for your organization, your department, or specific project.

As explained in the video the European GDPR (General data protection regulation) is embedded in the broader context of our fundamental rights. GDPR embodies the right to protection against any unbridled use of personal data. 

How is GDPR contextualized in the History of Legislation?

• The convention on human rights in 1948 declared the right to respect for a person’s private and family life.
• The European Charter on fundamental rights, declared in 2000, created two separate fundamental rights: one on the protection of private life and, one on the protection of personal data. The Charter explicitly recognizes the right to data protection (Article 8) as a fundamental right, affirming the importance of privacy and data protection within the EU legal framework. There is though a difference between Privacy and Personal Data Protection. While both rights are related to individual autonomy and privacy, the right to private life applies to broader aspects of personal autonomy, whereas the right to personal data protection focuses specifically on the handling of personal data which extends to various aspects of an individual's life, including personal but also professional information for example.
• The Council of Europe in 1981 was the first step toward a separate framework for the protection of personal data. The CoE is an international organization separate from the EU, comprising 47 member states, including EU member states and others like Russia and Turkey. The so-called convention 108, serves as a model for data protection laws in Europe and globally.
• The 1995 EU directive on the protection of personal data was an initiative of the European commission decided to a more harmonized approach because National legislation on the topic of data protection was booming.