World Tensions Increase Demand for Privacy Watchdogs, Says Belgian DPA
LONDON -- With the rule of law and protection of individuals trending as issues in Europe, the U.S. and elsewhere, it's important to have data protection authorities ensuring that fundamental rights are respected, Hielke Hijmans, litigation chamber president of the Belgian Data Protection Authority, said Wednesday.
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The European Parliament and Council are negotiating a procedural regulation intended to boost cooperation between DPAs, Hijmans noted at the IAPP London 2025 conference. If adopted, it will enable quicker enforcement of EU privacy rules as it will let DPAs join forces earlier on cross-border issues, he told us. Enforcement will also benefit from a rapid response team that the European Data Protection Board created, he noted (see 2502110003).
DPAs consider various factors when deciding to investigate data protection issues, said U.K. Information Commissioner's Office Legal Director Mairead O'Reilly. Among these are the risk of harm to a data subject; how many data subjects are affected; and the risk of harm to children, she said.
Other factors include whether another regulator, such as Ofcom, would be better placed to investigate, and whether a probe aligns with ICO strategies, O'Reilly said.
Still, privacy complaints pose an "enormous dilemma" for DPAs because national and EU laws require them to treat every case individually and that's impossible because there are so many, Hijmans said. Authorities must therefore craft priority strategies and dismiss cases that hold little interest for society, he added. For instance, many complaints involve employee-employer conflict, but often these don't have data protection at their core and little societal impact, he said.
Asked during the conference session whether guidance or enforcement is more effective in shaping compliance, the regulators agreed they're equally important. Guidance is intended to educate and inform organizations, something particularly important in the face of uncertainty about today's new technologies, O'Reilly said. Engagement with organizations is also valuable, she added.