The (in)adequacy of the law to new technologies: the example of the Google/Cnil and Facebook cases before the Court of Justice of the European Union

Abstract

The paper starts with the analysis of the two recent decisions of the Court of Justice of the European Union on the Google/CNIL and Facebook cases, also in the light of the GDPR.

The digital revolution is giving one of the greatest transformations to the world since the era of the industrial revolution and is equally aware that we must be ready for the ever-greater penetration of new technologies into our lives. With specific regard to the right to be forgotten, the real problem lies in the fact that personal data become substantially indelible once they have been published online and the only possibility is to think about a possible balance between innovation and the protection of fundamental rights.

For this reason, this paper highlights how both the legislator and the Courts do not pay the due attention to the new technologies behind the law, suggesting a technological approach to law as a way to better protect fundamental rights in the digital age.