CMDS Fellow Kristina Irion has participated in an empirical study of filing complaints with Data Protection Authorities under the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

The study, commissioned by Access Now, examines the practices of data protection authorities related to facilitating the submission of data infringement complaints and handling such complaints.

The study finds “a lack of precise information on complaint-handling” and inconsistencies in national practices. It also points out that there is a “recurrent lack of clarity as to what can be expected by complainants after lodging a complaint.”

The paper provides empirical evidence of the problems with the GDRP complaints system, and also contains proposals on how to address some of the issues.

The authors conclude that the discrepancies “concern very fundamental aspects of the submission and handling of complaints, with potentially serious implications on the level of data protection in the EU.”

The study authors are Gloria González Fuster, Jef Ausloos, Damian Bons, Lee A. Bygrave, Barbara da Rosa Lazarotto, Laura Drechsler, Olga Gkotsopoulou, Christopher Hristov, Kristina Irion, Lina Jasmontaite, Charlotte Kroese, Orla Lynskey, Maria Magierska.

Image: Convert GDPR / Flickr

Link: 

Read the paper