HDPA (Greece) - 15/2024
| HDPA - 15/2024 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Authority: | HDPA (Greece) |
| Jurisdiction: | Greece |
| Relevant Law: | Article 17 GDPR |
| Type: | Complaint |
| Outcome: | Upheld |
| Started: | 21.05.2018 |
| Decided: | 16.04.2024 |
| Published: | 30.05.2024 |
| Fine: | n/a |
| Parties: | Google Inc. |
| National Case Number/Name: | 15/2024 |
| European Case Law Identifier: | n/a |
| Appeal: | Unknown |
| Original Language(s): | Greek |
| Original Source: | HDPA (in EL) |
| Initial Contributor: | Inder-kahlon |
The DPA decided that the right to erasure must be satisfied and instructs Google to immediately remove specific search results linked to the complainant's name, also to check and delete if any similar links do appear in the Google search engine.
English Summary
Facts
The data subject submitted a data erasure request to Google Inc. (the controller) requesting the removal of 55 search results from the controller's search engine that were produced with his full name search. The results linked to pages where the data subject's name had been linked to sensitive data. More specifically the data subject compliant about the inaccurate information linked to a criminal case. The data subject believed this information was no longer necessary and it impacted heavily on his private and professional life.
The controller responded to the request citing a legitimate public interest in having access to the information that concerned criminal offences, and arguing that deletion of the relevant links were therefore not permissible. The data subject complained to the HDPA on 21st May 2018 that the controller’s stand on one hand is in violation of CJEU - C‑131/12 - Google Spain and on the other hand failure to properly assess his request and supporting documents.
The Hellenic DPA invited Google LLC (formerly Google Inc.), to provide their views on the complainants. The controller responded that they had removed 11 urls while the conditions for removal weren’t fulfilled for the remaining 44 urls the complainant wanted deleted, removal was not justified. The controller concluded that the information was still relevant, and connected to the complainant's role in public life, meaning the public's right to access this information outweighed the complainant's right to have it removed.
Holding
The Hellenic DPA (HDPA) noted that a search engine provider that receives a deletion request based on the particular situation of the data subject must delete the personal data without unnecessary delays in accordance with Article 17(1)(c) GDPR unless it is able to demonstrate that there are "compelling and legitimate reasons" overriding the interests, rights and freedoms of the data subject for the inclusion of the specific search result, pursuant to Article 21(1) GDPR. Additionally, the Hellenic DPA noted the CJEU - C-460/20 - TU, RE v Google point 52,62 individuals have the right to have personal information delinked from search results based on their full name.
The Hellenic DPA noted that the complainant in this case was not a public figure, and the information in question was outdated and no longer of public interest. Based on these factors, the conditions for removing the specified links from Google search results under the complainant's full name were met. Consequently, the HDPA ordered the controller to immediately delete the links appearing as search results for the complainant's name in the Google search engine and to confirm that other links with the same content mentioned in the complaint do not appear as results for the complainant's full name. If they do, they must also be deleted from the Google search engine.
Comment
Relevant cases: HDPA 11/2024 HDPA 12/2024
The Hellenic DPAs clarified regarding public figure: Although a data subject may not be a public figure, they can still be considered to have a role in public life due to their professional activities. This criterion is broader than that of a "public person" and often includes executives of organizations that play a significant role in the country's business sector, where public interest in their activities is justified. Typically, politicians, senior civil servants, business leaders, and professionals in regulated fields are seen as having a role in public life. However, in this case, the complainant is not the individual mentioned in the publications, holding a position of executive authority or delegating management to other executives. Therefore, there is no particular public interest in this individual's activities.
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English Machine Translation of the Decision
The decision below is a machine translation of the Greek original. Please refer to the Greek original for more details.
The Authority finds that the natural person's right to erasure must be satisfied and instructs the internet search engine company, as controller, a. to immediately proceed with the removal-deletion of the links in question that arise as results with the complainant's name as a search criterion in the search engine, and b. to confirm that the name of the complainant and the other links with the same content mentioned in the complaint under consideration do not appear as a result in the search engine as a criterion and, in the opposite case, to proceed with the deletion of these from the results of the search engine.
