Article 14 GDPR

← Article 14: Information to be provided where personal data have not been obtained from the data subject →
Chapter 1: General provisions Article 1: Subject-matter and objectives Article 2: Material scope Article 3: Territorial scope Article 4: Definitions Chapter 2: Principles Article 5: Principles relating to processing of personal data Article 6: Lawfulness of processing Article 7: Conditions for consent Article 8: Conditions applicable to child’s consent in relation to information society services Article 9: Processing of special categories of personal data Article 10: Processing of personal data relating to criminal convictions and offences Article 11: Processing which does not require identification Chapter 3: Rights of the data subject Article 12: Transparent information, communication and modalities for the exercise of the rights of the data subject Article 13: Information to be provided where personal data are collected from the data subject Article 14: Information to be provided where personal data have not been obtained from the data subject Article 15: Right of access by the data subject Article 16: Right to rectification Article 17: Right to erasure (‘right to be forgotten’) Article 18: Right to restriction of processing Article 19: Notification obligation regarding rectification or erasure of personal data or restriction of processing Article 20: Right to data portability Article 21: Right to object Article 22: Automated individual decision-making, including profiling Article 23: Restrictions Chapter 4: Controller and processor Article 24: Responsibility of the controller Article 25: Data protection by design and by default Article 26: Joint controllers Article 27: Representatives of controllers or processors not established in the Union Article 28: Processor Article 29: Processing under the authority of the controller or processor Article 30: Records of processing activities Article 31: Cooperation with the supervisory authority Article 32: Security of processing Article 33: Notification of a personal data breach to the supervisory authority Article 34: Communication of a personal data breach to the data subject Article 35: Data protection impact assessment Article 36: Prior consultation Article 37: Designation of the data protection officer Article 38: Position of the data protection officer Article 39: Tasks of the data protection officer Article 40: Codes of conduct Article 41: Monitoring of approved codes of conduct Article 42: Certification Article 43: Certification bodies Chapter 5: Transfers of personal data Article 44: General principle for transfers Article 45: Transfers on the basis of an adequacy decision Article 46: Transfers subject to appropriate safeguards Article 47: Binding corporate rules Article 48: Transfers or disclosures not authorised by Union law Article 49: Derogations for specific situations Article 50: International cooperation for the protection of personal data Chapter 6: Supervisory authorities Article 51: Supervisory authority Article 52: Independence Article 53: General conditions for the members of the supervisory authority Article 54: Rules on the establishment of the supervisory authority Article 55: Competence Article 56: Competence of the lead supervisory authority Article 57: Tasks Article 58: Powers Article 59: Activity reports Chapter 7: Cooperation and consistency Article 60: Cooperation between the lead supervisory authority and the other supervisory authorities concerned Article 61: Mutual assistance Article 62: Joint operations of supervisory authorities Article 63: Consistency mechanism Article 64: Opinion of the Board Article 65: Dispute resolution by the Board Article 66: Urgency procedure Article 67: Exchange of information Article 68: European Data Protection Board Article 69: Independence Article 70: Tasks of the Board Article 71: Reports Article 72: Procedure Article 73: Chair Article 74: Tasks of the Chair Article 75: Secretariat Article 76: Confidentiality Chapter 8: Remedies, liability and penalties Article 77: Right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority Article 78: Right to an effective judicial remedy against a supervisory authority Article 79: Right to an effective judicial remedy against a controller or processor Article 80: Representation of data subjects Article 81: Suspension of proceedings Article 82: Right to compensation and liability Article 83: General conditions for imposing administrative fines Article 84: Penalties Chapter 9: Specific processing situations Article 85: Processing and freedom of expression and information Article 86: Processing and public access to official documents Article 87: Processing of the national identification number Article 88: Processing in the context of employment Article 89: Safeguards and derogations relating to processing for archiving purposes in the public interest, scientific or historical research purposes or statistical purposes Article 90: Obligations of secrecy Article 91: Existing data protection rules of churches and religious associations Chapter 10: Delegated and implementing acts Article 92: Exercise of the delegation Article 93: Committee procedure Chapter 11: Final provisions Article 94: Repeal of Directive 95: /46: /EC Article 95: Relationship with Directive 20: 02: /58: /EC Article 96: Relationship with previously concluded Agreements Article 97: Commission reports Article 98: Review of other Union legal acts on data protection Article 99: Entry into force and application

Legal Text

Article 14: Information to be provided where personal data have not been obtained from the data subject

1. Where personal data have not been obtained from the data subject, the controller shall provide the data subject with the following information:

(a) the identity and the contact details of the controller and, where applicable, of the controller's representative;

(b) the contact details of the data protection officer, where applicable;

(c) the purposes of the processing for which the personal data are intended as well as the legal basis for the processing;

(d) the categories of personal data concerned;

(e) the recipients or categories of recipients of the personal data, if any;

(f) where applicable, that the controller intends to transfer personal data to a recipient in a third country or international organisation and the existence or absence of an adequacy decision by the Commission, or in the case of transfers referred to in Article 46 or 47, or the second subparagraph of Article 49(1), reference to the appropriate or suitable safeguards and the means to obtain a copy of them or where they have been made available.

2. In addition to the information referred to in paragraph 1, the controller shall provide the data subject with the following information necessary to ensure fair and transparent processing in respect of the data subject:

(a) the period for which the personal data will be stored, or if that is not possible, the criteria used to determine that period;

(b) where the processing is based on point (f) of Article 6(1), the legitimate interests pursued by the controller or by a third party;

(c) the existence of the right to request from the controller access to and rectification or erasure of personal data or restriction of processing concerning the data subject and to object to processing as well as the right to data portability;

(d) where processing is based on point (a) of Article 6(1) or point (a) of Article 9(2), the existence of the right to withdraw consent at any time, without affecting the lawfulness of processing based on consent before its withdrawal;

(e) the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority;

(f) from which source the personal data originate, and if applicable, whether it came from publicly accessible sources;

(g) the existence of automated decision-making, including profiling, referred to in Article 22(1) and (4) and, at least in those cases, meaningful information about the logic involved, as well as the significance and the envisaged consequences of such processing for the data subject.

3. The controller shall provide the information referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2:

(a) within a reasonable period after obtaining the personal data, but at the latest within one month, having regard to the specific circumstances in which the personal data are processed;

(b) if the personal data are to be used for communication with the data subject, at the latest at the time of the first communication to that data subject; or

(c) if a disclosure to another recipient is envisaged, at the latest when the personal data are first disclosed.

4. Where the controller intends to further process the personal data for a purpose other than that for which the personal data were obtained, the controller shall provide the data subject prior to that further processing with information on that other purpose and with any relevant further information as referred to in paragraph 2.

5. Paragraphs 1 to 4 shall not apply where and insofar as:

(a) the data subject already has the information;

(b) the provision of such information proves impossible or would involve a disproportionate effort, in particular for processing for archiving purposes in the public interest, scientific or historical research purposes or statistical purposes, subject to the conditions and safeguards referred to in Article 89(1) or in so far as the obligation referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article is likely to render impossible or seriously impair the achievement of the objectives of that processing. In such cases the controller shall take appropriate measures to protect the data subject's rights and freedoms and legitimate interests, including making the information publicly available;

(c) obtaining or disclosure is expressly laid down by Union or Member State law to which the controller is subject and which provides appropriate measures to protect the data subject's legitimate interests; or

(d) where the personal data must remain confidential subject to an obligation of professional secrecy regulated by Union or Member State law, including a statutory obligation of secrecy.

Relevant Recitals

Recital 60: Information Requirements

The principles of fair and transparent processing require that the data subject be informed of the existence of the processing operation and its purposes. The controller should provide the data subject with any further information necessary to ensure fair and transparent processing taking into account the specific circumstances and context in which the personal data are processed. Furthermore, the data subject should be informed of the existence of profiling and the consequences of such profiling. Where the personal data are collected from the data subject, the data subject should also be informed whether he or she is obliged to provide the personal data and of the consequences, where he or she does not provide such data. That information may be provided in combination with standardised icons in order to give in an easily visible, intelligible and clearly legible manner, a meaningful overview of the intended processing. Where the icons are presented electronically, they should be machine-readable.

Recital 61: Time of Information Provision

The information in relation to the processing of personal data relating to the data subject should be given to him or her at the time of collection from the data subject, or, where the personal data are obtained from another source, within a reasonable period, depending on the circumstances of the case. Where personal data can be legitimately disclosed to another recipient, the data subject should be informed when the personal data are first disclosed to the recipient. Where the controller intends to process the personal data for a purpose other than that for which they were collected, the controller should provide the data subject prior to that further processing with information on that other purpose and other necessary information. Where the origin of the personal data cannot be provided to the data subject because various sources have been used, general information should be provided.

Recital 62: Exceptions to Information Requirement

However, it is not necessary to impose the obligation to provide information where the data subject already possesses the information, where the recording or disclosure of the personal data is expressly laid down by law or where the provision of information to the data subject proves to be impossible or would involve a disproportionate effort. The latter could in particular be the case where processing is carried out for archiving purposes in the public interest, scientific or historical research purposes or statistical purposes. In that regard, the number of data subjects, the age of the data and any appropriate safeguards adopted should be taken into consideration.

Commentary

Together with Article 13 GDPR, Article 14 GDPR provides for the controllers the obligation to inform data subjects about the processing of their personal data. Article 14 is therefore an expression of the principle of transparency enshrined in Article 5(1)(a) GDPR.

Article 14 GDPR has to be read in conjunction with Article 12 GDPR which provides for further rules on transparency and modalities in connection with the provision of information under Article 13 and 14 GDPR, as well as regarding the communication with data subjects in connection to their data subjects rights.

While Article 13 GDPR applies in situations where personal data are collected directly from the data subjects (e.g. through the filling out of an electronic form), Article 14 GDPR applies to situations where personal data have not been obtained directly from the data subjects (e.g. submitted from a third party), also referred to as indirect collection.

Article 14 GDPR is divided into 5 paragraphs. The first two paragraphs lists elements the controller needs to include in its information to the data subject.

The third paragraph provides for rules regarding the time at which a controller has to fulfill its information obligation. These rules should ensure that the information is provided early enough for the data subject to assess the lawfulness of the processing activity and effectively exercise their rights under the GDPR.

The fourth paragraph defines the obligation to notify the data subject when the controller intends to process the data subject's personal data for a purpose other than the purpose for which the data were originally collected (i.e. further processing).

Lastly, the fifth paragraph provides for some exemptions from the information obligation.

WP29 and EDPB Guidelines: For this Article, see the following Guidelines:

• WP29, ‘Guidelines on Transparency under Regulation 2016/679’, 17/EN WP260 rev.01, 11 April 2018 (available here); and
• EDPB, ‘Guidelines 01/2022 on data subject rights - Right of access’, 28 March 2023 (Version 2.1) (available here).

(1) Information the controller shall provide when personal data has not been obtained from the data subject

Relationship with Article 13 GDPR

Since Article 13 GDPR and Article 14 GDPR are almost identical in content. The original proposal for the GDPR by the European Commission had, for good reasons, treated both situations in one Article. However, in the political process the Article was duplicated and adapted for the two different situations. The Commentary below will mostly refer to the corresponding sections of the Commentary on Article 13 GDPR. Only substantial differences between those two Articles will be discussed below.

In practice, information under Article 13 and 14 GDPR are usually provided in a single privacy policy. There is no requirement to separate the information, as long as the information is provided to the data subject in a concise, transparent, intelligible and easily accessible form and on time.

For example: A clothing retailer makes it possible to buy clothing online and pay later. It collects the necessary information from customers using an online form on its website. The retailer also manually collects data of potential customers from the insolvency register in order to decide if an order by a customer should be declined due to an ongoing insolvency. Since the retailer collects personal data directly from the data subject as well as from a public register, it has an information obligation under Article 13 and 14 GDPR. The operator decides to include information about both processing activities in one joint privacy policy and brings this privacy policy to the data subject’s attention at the time of the data collection.

Similarly to the information provided under Article 13 GDPR, the controller needs to actively furnish the information to the data subject; simply making the information available (e.g. on the controller's website) is insufficient, rather, the data subject must be actively informed.

See also Commentary on Article 13 GDPR for more information.

Data not obtained from the data subject

A data is not obtained directly from the data subject when the latter is not involved in the controller's collection operations; in other words, in case the data subject is not the immediate origin of the data collected by the controller. This includes situations where controllers collect data that is generally available ("open source information"), information from external data providers, various business partners, information provided by other natural persons (on various platforms), information generated by the controller itself and alike. This also includes situations where multiple controllers work together, such as an online shop which provides personal data to the payment service provider and the delivery service, and all receive personal data, without obtaining it directly from the data subject.

"[I]t must be observed that the material scope of Article 14 of the GDPR is defined negatively by reference to Article 13 of that regulation. As is apparent from those provisions’ headings themselves, Article 13 concerns the information to be provided where personal data are collected from the data subject, while Article 14 concerns the information which must be provided where personal data have not been collected from the data subject. In the light of that dichotomy, all situations in which data are not collected from the data subject fall within the material scope of Article 14.

Therefore, it follows from the combined interpretation of Articles 13 and 14 of the GDPR that both personal data obtained by the controller from a person other than the data subject, and data generated by the controller itself – which, on account of their nature, have also not been obtained from the data subject – fall within the scope of Article 14."

CJEU - C-169/23 - Másdi, margin number 48 et seq.

"In the light of the wording of Article 14(2)(f) of the GDPR, read in the light of recital 61 of that regulation, it must be held that only the source of the personal data collected is the relevant criterion for the purposes of determining the respective scopes of Articles 13 and 14 of the GDPR. Under Article 14(2)(f), where the data have not been obtained from the data subject, the controller must inform the data subject of the source of the personal data."

CJEU - Case C-422/24 - AB Storstockholms Lokaltrafik, margin number 35.

(a) Identity and contact details of the controller

Given the identical wording, see commentary on Article 13(1)(a) GDPR.

(b) Contact details of the data protection officer

Given the identical wording, see commentary on Article 13(1)(b) GDPR.

(c) Purposes and legal basis

Given the identical wording, see commentary on Article 13(1)(c) GDPR.

(d) Categories of personal data

In an Article 14 scenario, the legislator found it necessary to also provide a list of the categories of personal data that were obtained, because the data controller has obtained the personal data from a source other than the data subject, who is therefore usually unaware of the specific categories of personal data that have been obtained. The rationale behind that provision is to allow the data subjects to contextualise the processing and better understand its material scope. When data are directly collected from the data subjects, as envisaged in Article 13 GDPR, the latter normally already know which data are being processed since they provided them to the controller (for example, by filling an online form, agreeing to cookies usage, etc). By contrast, when the controller obtains the data from a third party, as envisaged in Article 14 GDPR, the data subjects may not be aware of which personal data are being processed, hence the importance of providing this additional piece of information to them is to avoid a lack in transparency.

The term "category" is not defined in the GDPR. The enumeration of "special categories" of personal data in Article 9 GDPR (e.g. data relating to health, political opinions, ethnic origin, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, etc.) does not serve as a definition, just because the same word is used. Simply referring to "health data" as a category would be too broad to comply with the transparency obligations under Article 5(1)(a) and 12(1) GDPR, given that it may cover one simple information, such as the weight of the data subject, or on the contrary "a myriad of information", such as the weight, height, heart rate, blood pressure, HIV status, cancer treatments and much more.

In any case, the controller should be specific enough to meet the requirements of Article 5(1)(a) and 12(1) GDPR, to comply with the principle of fairness and transparency, while presenting such information in a concise and intelligible form. The level of required detail is rather unclear, but in practice controllers often draft a table of data fields (e.g. name, address, email) and group them into detailed enough categories (like "name" and "contact details").

The level of detail provided to the data subject should enable them to assess the lawfulness of the use of the data and whether the data is indeed necessary for the purposes of the data processing. Similarly, the data subject should be in a position to assess the risk the processing of their data entails. Therefore, the information should be more granular in case of more intrusive processing activities. In such a case the requirements of Article 12 GDPR should be considered, just as it should be considered that this information is clearly available to the controller.

However, it should also be pointed out that the data subject can always exercise its right of access under Article 15 GDPR which requires the controller to provide the specific processed data and not just data categories.

For example: A data broker collects information about data subjects from various sources, including cookie data, IP addresses, user IDs from various platforms and email addresses. It is not transparent to only state that the controller collects "data about online behaviour". It would be "appropriate" within the meaning of Article 12(1) GDPR to list the ten or twenty data types that are collected, given that this amounts to no relevant effort by the controller and would ensure full transparency, as well as using clear and plain language.

(e) Recipients

Given the identical wording, see commentary on Article 13(1)(e) GDPR.

(f) International transfers

Given the identical wording, see commentary on Article 13(1)(f) GDPR.

(2) Obligation to provide further information at the time when personal data are obtained

Just as paragraph 1, paragraph 2 of Article 14 GDPR provides for the specific elements the controller has to include in the information of the data subject. There is no difference, if the information is required in Article 14(1) or Article 14(2) GDPR and the controller has to comply with both provisions equally. See Commentary on the relationship of Article 13(1) and Article 13(2) GDPR.

(a) Retention period

Given the identical wording, see commentary on Article 13(2)(a) GDPR.

(b) Legitimate interests

Given the identical wording, see commentary on Article 13(1)(d) GDPR.

(c) Information about data subjects' rights

Given the identical wording, see commentary on Article 13(2)(b) GDPR.

(d) Information about the right to withdraw consent

Given the identical wording, see commentary on Article 13(2)(c) GDPR.

(e) The right to lodge a complaint

Given the identical wording, see commentary on Article 13(2)(d) GDPR.

(f) Source of personal data

In case of indirect collection of personal data, Article 14(2)(f) GDPR requires the controller to inform the data subjects about the source of such data. A source may be another entity or party, but also includes a technical source (like open sources, sensors, CCTV or online tracking tools).

If the data have been obtained from a publicly accessible source, the controller must indicate this fact (for instance, online newspapers, social networks, other publicly accessible sources). In most cases, however, controllers may obtain personal data from third parties, for example from data brokers, affiliates, business partners or other controllers. This should help the data subjects to exercise their rights against not only the controller providing the information under Article 14 GDPR, but also by the controller which is the source of the data.

To comply with data protection principles, such as data protection by design and by default, it is important to incorporate transparency mechanisms into processing systems during the system's design and implementation phase. By doing so, organisations can effectively track and trace all personal data sources that are received into their systems throughout the data processing life cycle, enabling them to be fully transparent about their data handling practices. A controller should therefore be capable to provide data subjects with information about the sources of their data, even in cases numerous sources were used.

Consequently, controllers should provide the data subjects with the specific source of their data. Only if this is practically impossible, the controller might simply provide general information about the source of the information.

(g) Automated decision-making

Given the identical wording, see commentary on Article 13(2)(f) GDPR.

(3) Time at which information on processing should be provided

Another difference between Article 13 and 14 GDPR concerns the time at which the information must be provided to the data subjects. While Article 13(1) GDPR requires the information of the data subject at the time the data is obtained by the controller, Article 14(3) GDPR provides for three different scenarios, each having their own time limit. The tree requirements apply in parallel. Whichever deadline lapses first, will trigger the requirement to provide the information. Obviously these are just the last moments when information has to be provided, a controller can always provide information at an earlier, maybe more convenient moment.

"Accountability requires controllers to demonstrate the rationale for their decision and justify why the information was provided at the time it was. In practice, it may be difficult to meet these requirements when providing information at the ‘last moment’."

WP29, ‘Guidelines on Transparency under Regulation 2016/679’, 17/EN WP260 rev.01, 11 April 2018, margin number 28.

"[B]y requiring that the information referred to in Article 13 of the GDPR be disclosed to the data subject at the time it is obtained, that article gives specific expression to the right of that person to be informed. By contrast, Article 14 of that regulation was adopted in order to respond to situations in which the controller is not in direct contact with the data subject, but collects the personal data from another source, with the result that the disclosure of the information referred to in that provision at the time when that information is obtained is, in practice, made difficult or even impossible. The indirect nature of such collection therefore justifies the latter provision providing for the possibility of deferring the controller’s obligation to provide information."

CJEU - Case C-422/24 - AB Storstockholms Lokaltrafik, margin number 39.

(a) Within a reasonable period from collection, but at the latest one month

Article 14(3) GDPR introduces a general rule, according to which controllers must provide the mandatory information to data subjects "within a reasonable period after obtaining the personal data", and at the latest within a month from the day of the indirect collection. The maximum period of one month is also applicable in any case, i.e. the controller cannot invoke one of the deadlines stipulated in Article 14(3)(b) or Article 14(3)(c) GDPR in order to prolong the deadline to more than a month.

For the assessment of a reasonable period, the provision demands that the specific circumstances must be regarded. For such an assessment the controller should consider its possibilities to inform the data subject as well as the data subject's interests in receiving the information, and at which time the information is needed by the data subject in order to effectively exercise its rights under the GDPR.

(b) When the first communication with the data subject occurs

Article 14(3)(b) GDPR states that if the indirectly obtained personal data are to be used for communication with the data subject, then the controller must provide all mandatory information under Article 14 GDPR "at the latest at the time of the first communication to that data subject." However, if the contact is not made within the first month of the collection of the data the general rule established under Article 14(3)(a) GDPR applies instead (i.e. time limit of one-month as a maximum).

For example: A recruitment agency collects publicly available personal data from various platforms such as LinkedIn or Xing in order to contact specific profiles about new career opportunities. The recruitment agency must add a privacy notice containing all information listed in Article 14(2) and (3) in the first email or message sent to these data subjects. However, if the recruitment agency delays this first communication beyond one month, the information must in any case be provided within the general applicable one-month time limit.

(c) When the disclosure of personal data takes place

Article 14(3)(c) GDPR states that if the personal data are to be disclosed to another recipient, then the controller must provide all mandatory information under Article 14 GDPR "at the latest when the personal data are first disclosed". If the disclosure is not made within the first month of the collection of the data, however, the general rule established under Article 14(3)(a) GDPR should apply instead (i.e. time limit one-month as a maximum).

(4) Information on the Further Processing of Personal Data

Given the identical wording, see commentary on Article 13(3) GDPR.

(5) Exemptions

According to Article 14(5) GDPR, the first four paragraphs of the provision do not apply if one of the following conditions is met: (a) the data subject is already informed; (b) providing the information is impossible or requires disproportionate effort; (c) the collection or disclosure of the data is required by an EU or Member State law; and finally, (d) in case the data must remain confidential due to professional secrecy. Controllers may not abusively rely on these exemptions which must be interpreted restrictively and applied narrowly.

(a) Data subject is already informed

Given the identical wording, see commentary on Article 13(4) GDPR.

(b) Providing the information proves impossible, requires disproportionate efforts, involves serious impairment

Under Article 14(5)(b), the controller does not have to comply with the obligation to provide the information outlined in Articles 14(1), 14(2), and 14(4) GDPR when this (i) proves impossible, or (ii) involves a disproportionate effort (in particular, for archival, scientific, historical research, or statistical purposes), or (iii) is likely to seriously impair the objectives of the processing. In all such cases, appropriate measures must be adopted to protect the data subject’s rights and freedoms and legitimate interests, which would at least require the publication of the information (Article 14(5)(b) GDPR).

(i) Proves impossible

Under Article 14(5)(b) GDPR the scenario in which providing information is deemed "impossible" is a binary one, as something is either possible or impossible with no gradations in between. Therefore, if a data controller intends to use this exemption, it must explain the specific factors that make it impossible to providing the relevant information to the data subject. Furthermore, if these factors cease to exist after a certain time, and it becomes feasible to provide the information to the data subjects, the data controller should promptly do so. In reality, there will be very few instances where a data controller can establish that it is genuinely impossible to supply information to data subjects.

If partial elements cannot be provided, the controller must still provide as much information as possible. For example, if the specific source cannot be named, then the controller should at least provide general information regarding the source(s), such as their nature (i.e. public or private) or the types of organization, industry or sector concerned (e.g. national register of companies).

(ii) Involves disproportionate efforts, archival, scientific, historical research, or statistical purposes

The exemption under Article 14(5)(b) GDPR also applies in case the provision of the information involves a disproportionate effort. In order to invoke this exemption, the controller must demonstrate that the provision of information to the data subjects would involve a disproportionate effort, notably because of the number of data subjects or the age of the data (Recital 62). Where a data controller seeks to rely on this exception, it should carry out a balancing test, which weighs, on the one side, the potential effort to be made and, on the other, the effects that the absence of information could have on the data subjects.

It is rather common that controllers arrive at a negative outcome in this balancing test, which would deprive Article 14 GDPR of any practical meaning. The mere fact that a controller processes information about large numbers of data subjects can for example not be a reason to see a "disproportionate effort". Otherwise larger controllers would almost always be freed of the duties under Article 14 GDPR, which would make secret collection of personal data the norm - not the exception.

For example: An address broker has - by definition - the addresses of most persons in its database. Just the mere fact that it holds information about almost ever resident of a given country, does not mean that informing data subjects that their addresses are collected, stored and sold to third parties would always be "disproportionate".

"Archival, scientific, historical research or statistical purposes" are named as typical examples where this condition may be met. Archives would often have to dig through millions of documents and inform everyone named or national statistics offices would have to inform every resident. In the drafting process of the GDPR, these purposes were also a common ground for various privileges (see Article 5(1)(b) GDPR or Article 89 GDPR). However, these purposes are not exempt per se, but must still undertake a balancing test - just with a hint from the legislator that they are more likely to arrive at a result that points at not informing people directly.

For example: A pharmaceutical company gets patient data to conduct further research. If the pharmaceutical company has the electronic contract details of patients or it only concerns a reasonably small group it would usually not be "disproportionate" to inform them.

If the assessment of the "balancing test" is negative, this assessment must be documented and must result in the implementation of appropriate measures (see below).

(iii) Render impossible or seriously impair the objective of the processing

Article 14(5)(b) GDPR covers a final scenario where a data controller's disclosure of information to a data subject in accordance with Article 14(1) GDPR could potentially hinder or make it impossible to achieve the intended processing objectives. To utilize this exception, data controllers must demonstrate that providing the information stated in Article 14(1) GDPR on its own would render the processing objectives null and void or seriously impair them. It's important to note that this particular aspect of Article 14(5)(b) assumes that the data processing conforms to all of the principles outlined in Article 5 GDPR, particularly that the processing of personal data is fair and has a legal basis under all circumstances. This exemption may apply to situations where confidentiality is necessary to protect the investigation and ensure its success.

For example: A private detective is hired to investigate suspected misconduct by a person. If the investigation is based on strong enough suspicions, the detective is not required to provide the person with information under Article 14(5)(b) until the investigation is completed, even if it takes longer than the one-month deadline outlined in Article 14(3)(a) GDPR. However, the detective must provide the information to the person at the latest at the end of the investigation, as required by Article 14(3)(b) GDPR.

Appropriate measures to be taken instead of the provision of information

In case the controller relies on any of the exceptions outlined in Article 14(5)(b) GDPR, it is required to implement appropriate measures that safeguard the data subject's rights, freedoms and legitimate interests. These measures are aimed at compensating for the lack of transparency that results from not providing information. A controller can do this in a number of ways, but the law requires to at least publish the information (e.g. by putting the information on its website, or by proactively advertising the information or by posting information on its premises). Read in the light of Article 12(1) GDPR, these efforts must reasonably reach the relevant data subjects - taking into account that a data subject does not know about the processing and will therefore not seek the information. Other appropriate measures, in addition to making the information publicly available, will depend on the circumstances of the processing.

"Other appropriate measures, in addition to making the information publicly available, will depend on the circumstances of the processing, but may include: undertaking a data protection impact assessment; applying pseudonymisation techniques to the data; minimising the data collected and the storage period; and implementing technical and organisational measures to ensure a high level of security."

uropa.eu/system/files/2023-09/wp260rev01_en.pdf WP29, ‘Guidelines on Transparency under Regulation 2016/679’, 17/EN WP260 rev.01, 11 April 2018, margin number 64.

(c) Collection or disclosure of data is required by EU or Member State law

Article 14(5)(c) GDPR permits the data controller to omit the information required under Article 14(1) to (4) GDPR when obtaining or disclosing personal data is explicitly mandated by Union or Member State law to which the controller is subject. However, this exemption is subject to certain conditions. Firstly, the law in question must provide adequate measures to protect the data subject's legitimate interests. This means that the level of protection of the data subject has to be at least equivalent to that guaranteed by the controller's information obligation under Article 14(1) to (4) GDPR. Therefore the Union or Member State law should specifically mention the source from which data subjects will obtain information about the processing of their personal data. Secondly, the law should specifically address the data controller, and the obtaining or disclosure in question should be mandatory for the data controller, not optional.

"[…] the ratio legis of that exception is that the obligation to provide information to the data subject imposed by Article 14(1), (2) and (4) of that regulation is not justified when another provision of EU law or of Member State law imposes on the controller a sufficiently comprehensive and binding obligation to provide to the data subject information relating to obtaining or disclosure of personal data. In the situation covered by Article 14(5)(c), data subjects must have sufficient knowledge of the detailed rules and the purposes of obtaining or disclosing those data."

CJEU - C-169/23 - Másdi, margin number 44.

The data controller must demonstrate how the law applies to them and requires them to obtain or disclose the personal data. While it is the responsibility of Union or Member State law to provide appropriate measures to protect the data subject's interests, the controller must ensure that its obtaining or disclosing of personal data complies with those measures and should inform data subjects that it is doing so in accordance with the law, unless there's a legal prohibition preventing them from doing so. Finally, Member States may legislate, in line with Article 23 GDPR, for additional specific restrictions to the right to transparency under Article 12 and to information under Articles 13 and 14 GDPR.

For example: An employer is required to report the salaries of all employees to the tax authority under national law. The personal data is not obtained from the data subjects and therefore the tax authority is subject to the requirements of Article 14 GDPR. As the obtaining of the personal data by the tax authority from employers is expressly laid down by law, the information requirements in Article 14 GDPR do not apply to the tax authority in this instance. However, the employer must still name the authority as a recipient under Article 13(1)(e) GDPR.

(d) Data must remain confidential due to professional secrecy

Article 14(5)(d) GDPR provides an exemption from the information requirement for data controllers when personal data must remain confidential under a professional secrecy obligation regulated by Union or Member State law, including statutory obligations of secrecy. This is especially relevant for certain sectors, like the health care sector or the the legal sector. If a data controller wishes to rely on this exemption, they must demonstrate that they have correctly identified the exemption and explain how the professional secrecy obligation specifically pertains to the data controller in such a way that it prohibits them from providing all of the information outlined in Articles 14(1), 14(2), and 14(4) GDPR to the data subject.

Decisions

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