The Data Protection Inspectorate makes sure that people’s private information (personal data) is sufficiently protected. The Inspectorate also ensures that information on the activity of institutions (public information) is sufficiently available. The right to the protection of personal data and the right to public information are constitutional rights.
Personal data
Personal data signifies any information that makes it possible to identify a person directly or indirectly: name, picture, fingerprints, family data, place of residence, workplace, etc. Some data are considered special categories (religious and political affiliations, information on health and sex life, biometric data etc). Personal data may only be processed if there are legal grounds for processing – either consent, a contract, a legal duty, or justified interest.
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) gives individuals the right to request:
- information on whether and which data are being collected and used about them and for which purposes;
- rectification or deletion of personal data and the right to submit claims;
- restriction of the processing of the personal data or transfer of the data.
If your rights have been violated and the violator does not respond to your request, please turn to the Data Protection Inspectorate. Above all, it is up to everyone to ensure the safety of their data. If you keep information pertaining to you carelessly or disclose it yourself, you can harm yourself – from a deluge of spam email to account or identity theft.
If you seek compensation, apology and repudiation, you need to turn to the county court. Cases of defamation (slander, insult) should also be reported to the county court.
In the case of suspecting a crime – such as identity theft, individual or harassing persecution, unlawful study of humans –, turn to the police.
The General Data Protection Regulation does not extent to such collection and use of personal data which is only conducted by an individual for personal purposes and will remain in the private sphere.
Public information
Public information comprises the documents, databases etc created by institutions while performing public duties. Access to public information can be restricted only on the basis of law. Information in state or local government institutions might be necessary for a person as well as an enterprise, an organisation, a media publication or a scientific institution.
Access to public information will increase the transparency of the activity of the state. It ensures more effective control over the exercise of public authority, the performance of public duties, and the use of public money. The Public Information Act applies to public authorities as well as private undertakings and other persons governed by private law who are fulfilling public duties, using public fund, or who hold a monopolistic position in the market. Examples include the provision of social services, private child care institutions, etc.
The availability of public information is ensured in several ways:
- by submitting a request for information (to be answered in 5 working days). Requests for information may be submitted to request access to documents already held by the specific authority;
- the institution’s website has a register for incoming and outgoing documents, documents with no restriction on access are available there;
- by publishing important information on the institution's website.
If anyone wishes to consult the documents and request information, the request for information must be examined to determine whether the document requested can be released in whole or in part. Restricting access depends on the content of the document. Possible grounds for access restrictions are listed in the Public Information Act.
If you are asking an authority to provide explanations, including if the requested information must be compiled by using different documents, or if you are highlighting an issue, the document submitted is a request for explanation or a memorandum which must be responded to within one month.
Open data
Open data means the data in a machine-readable format that is made available for public use and that has no limits to usage or sharing. Any data which are subject to restriction on access pursuant to the law are not public data.
The Open Data Portal is intended to facilitate the disclosure of data for offices and to simplify finding of such sets of data for users of open data. Anyone can access the portal.
The following activities are possible in the Open Data Portal:
- searching for and downloading open data.
- adding new open data: prior registration and access rights from the administrator of the portal are required.
- using the data set storage, which is one of the places to store open data.
- using and finding applications created on the basis of open data.
- posting news, questions, discussions, and instructions about open data.
The data to be disclosed includes all data sets created by state offices and local governments, the public use of which is not directly prohibited. The disclosed data does not contain personal data and does not enable the identification of people by matching the disclosed data, except in the cases where the information is already public (e.g. employees of ministries).
More information and instructions for use can be found on the website of the Open Data Portal.
How to turn to the Data Protection Inspectorate
If your rights concerning public information have been violated (e.g. request for information is not answered), you may turn to the Data Protection Inspectorate with a challenge. You may also use a memorandum to notify the Inspectorate of other issues related to the Public Information Act.
References
Laws
- Personal Data Protection Act
- Public Information Act
- Electronic Communications Act
- Response to Memoranda and Requests for Explanations and Submission of Collective Addresses Act
- General Data Protection Regulation