Public Awareness and Data Protection

Nataša Pirc Musar,

Information commissioner, Republic of Slovenia

Brussels, 20th of May, 2009

Meaning and means of spreading public awareness

• IC of Slovenia devotes a lot of attention to preventive measures:– Educating and informing

• Individuals about their rights• Data controllers about their duties• General public on data protection issues

– Means of work:• Communication with the media

– Interviews– Newspaper articles, professional articles, books, commentaries– Press releases

Meaning and means of spreading public awareness

– Means of work:• Internet

– Website: news & recommended readings, opinions, decisions, multimedia, …

– e-newsletters of the IC (e-mailing list)• Publications of the IC

– handbooks, brochures, guidelines, annual reports, …• Lectures, round tables, public debates

COMMUNICATION WITH THE MEDIA

• Crucial part of spreading public awareness• Interviews:

– Reporters mostly interested in getting an interview on:• important cases • impact of new technologies on privacy (e.g. Facebook, biometrics,

body scans …)• other privacy matters (privacy on the internet, identity theft, spreading

of surveillance state, privacy in workplace, …)– With whom:

• Many interviews with the Information Commissioner• Interviews with Deputy, specialized in information technologies• Short interviews with Inspectors (when the case is closed)

COMMUNICATION WITH THE MEDIA

• Newspaper articles, professional articles, books, commentaries:

– Invited articles for daily or weekly newspapers (e.g. on identity theft, patients' medical data …)

– Professional articles for legal and other specialized journals– Books and commentaries:

• Commentary of the Data Protection Act, Commentary of the Patients Rights Act, Collection of Information Commissioner's opinions in the field of health care, Employees' privacy and employers' interests,…

– Most of the Information Commissioner's employees cooperate in such projects and write articles

 

COMMUNICATION WITH THE MEDIA

• Press releases:– Issued before and/or after important events, such as Data Protection

Day, important decisions (IC and courts), international cases (decisions of the ECJ, ECourtHR) …

– 85 reporters on the mailing list, in many cases they do report on the subject of the press release

INTERNET

• A useful and very much used platform for raising public awareness• Around 175,500 visitors per year• Content, dedicated to spreading awareness on personal data protection:

– Individuals' rights and obligations of data controllers– Decisions, legal opinions (more than 1600 published opinions of the IC)

and comments on legislative amendments and new legislation – Information technologies and personal data – special attention– Publications: guidelines, reports, articles, multimedia (special section for

children)– News and recommended reading – refreshed nearly every day, domestic

and international sources on developments in the field of data protection

 

When you have the internet, constantly work on it, upgrade it

INTERNET

• E-newsletter (mailing list of 4.900 subscribers) – important decisions, news, events,… issued at least once a month

• The Netko award for 2008 for the best website of a public administration institution, awarded on the grounds of its openness and user-friendly approach

• Proposal for the international award on e-government & institutions (World Summit Award 2009), submitted by an academic referee

PUBLICATIONS OF THE IC

• Handbooks, brochures, guidelines: – On crucial questions in the field of data protection– Handbooks and brochures: 12 (some of them also in other languages

besides Slovene: English, French, Russian, Croatian)• A guide through data protection for parents and teachers; • You decide! – a guide through data protection for youth; • Schengen and your personal data; • Access to my Privacy Denied!• Guidelines: 6 published, 7 in the making• Annual reports: 2005-2008

LECTURES, ROUND TABLES, PUBLIC DEBATES

• Both invited and self-initiated • Cca. 4 lectures per month• Most frequent topics:

– Privacy at workplace– Patients' rights – medical data– Internet technology and personal data protection

• Lectures for: general public, expert public and data controllers

RESULTS OF OUR WORK

• POLITBAROMETER – Slovenian public opinion poll

– Trust in public institutions

• Highest score comparing to other independent institutions

• 4th place among all other institutions

• EUROBAROMETER

– Poll on public opinion regarding awareness of personal data protection issues (individuals’ and data controllers’ viewpoint)

– In terms of awareness and knowledge about personal data protection rights – Slovenia one of the best in EU

• Individuals in Slovenia are highly aware of their rights, data controllers are highly aware of their duties

RESULTS OF OUR WORK

• EUROBAROMETER– 1st place among all EU member states regarding awareness of data

controllers of data protection legislation– 2nd place:

• data controllers’ duties• personal consent for personal data processing• individuals’ right to supplement, correct or block personal data

– 3rd place:• right to cessation of processing of personal data for certain purposes• right to compensation for illegal processing of personal data

RESULTS OF OUR WORK

• EUROBAROMETER

– 3rd place regarding the frequency of contacts with the National Supervisory Body for Personal Data Protection (i.e. Information Commissioner) – a signal that IC is a well accessible and trust-worthy body, to whom data controllers frequently turn for the advice

Thank you!

IC web page in English

www.ic-rs.si (eng.)