The assessment of the proportionality of the measures that limit the privacy foundamental rights in the new guidelines of the european data protection supervisor

Abstract

The European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) has been carefully observing the dimension that personal data protection has acquired in recent years in the European economic area, recognizing a growing attention paid by the legislator in all states members, all political sectors and in almost all the initiatives conducted by the European Commission. This attention is not only due to a greater awareness of public opinion, but to the fact that the huge data processing capacity allowed by technology causes a significant impact on each individual citizen’s life. In this context, in line with the development of the 2017 Necessity Toolkit, which had delimited the scope of the concept of the need for limitations to fundamental rights, the EDPS adopted in December 2019 new «Proportionality guidelines». These rules further define the content and purpose of the rights guaranteed by the Basic Charter and by the GDPR, developing a deep legal analysis aimed at creating a real proportionality test and practical tools to help assess the compliance of proposed EU measures that would impact the fundamental rights to privacy and the protection of personal data.