Data Protection

Roundtable - After the success of the roundtable sessions we held before the GDPR took effect (in May this year), our TMT team is enthusiastic about the session of 7 December, focusing on the lessons we have learned from working on multiple GDPR-matters in the past year. We will tackle some practical questions that we have encountered and that are not or cannot be readily answered by the new regulation.

Articles - For the launch of its Digital Law Blog, Stibbe builds on the recent EDPS lessons to discuss both the importance of technology and the need to reflect on it within the legal framework

Speaking slot - On Thursday 25 October, Agoria's Regulatory and Standardization Expertise Center organizes its 5th information day about regulations and standards for topics including international trade, privacy and contract law, transport, Internet of Things and blockchain, eHealth, ... at regional, national and European level.

Short Reads - On 5 June 2018, the European Court of Justice ("ECJ") decided on several preliminary questions that were raised in an administrative proceeding between the German Data Protection Authority ("GDPA") and Wirtschaftsakademie Schleswig-Holstein GmbH ("Wirtschaftsakademie"), a German educational services provider that offers its services through a Facebook fan page. In its decision, the ECJ held, among other things, that Wirtschaftsakademie qualifies as a data controller ex Article 2 under d Directive 95/46/EC[1] ("Privacy Directive").

Articles - The first edition of the Virtual Currency Regulation Law Review is intended to provide a practical, business-focused analysis of recent legal and regulatory changes and developments, and of their effects, and to look forward at expected trends in the area of virtual currencies on a country-by-country basis.

Short Reads - On 9 November, the European Council approved a regulation aiming to secure the free flow of non-personal data in the EU (the "Regulation"). This is another step towards the adoption of the Regulation, which aims to remove obstacles to the free movement of non-personal data in the EU.

Short Reads - The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) aims to strengthen the rights of individuals in respect of their personal data. Although this aim has been achieved to a certain extent, the fundamental framework of the way personal data is processed remains unchanged. Companies are still able to use large amounts of user data, in many cases without even obtaining their consent. Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web, has announced his plans for a decentralised web, in which users remain in control of their personal data.

Short Reads - On 25 May 2018, the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) came into effect. The GDPR replaces the EU's prior directive governing the processing and transfer of personal data, which was in place since 1995. As a regulation, the GDPR is directly applicable in all 28 EU member states and thus removes the need for national implementing legislation. However, the GDPR allows member states discretion in certain areas, as a result of which national legislation may still be implemented. In the Netherlands, the GDPR Implementation Act came into effect on 25 May 2018.