Data protection

13.11.2015

Question for written answer E-014737-15
to the Commission
Rule 130
Pablo Zalba Bidegain (PPE)

The ongoing tripartite discussions on data protection are an important step towards setting up a modern framework suitable for the digital age. The Commission intends to harmonise data protection rules in line with the EU's needs, reflecting the changes in technology, business and consumer behaviour that encapsulate the digital revolution.

The EU's data protection arrangements should have the twofold aim of facilitating access to information, so that the public can understand and manage the way their data is used, and providing a more harmonised legal framework, which is vital for SMEs.

To that end, we must foster new forms of cybersecurity so as to protect consumers and businesses, avoiding rigid rules on profiling and moving away from a uniform approach for processing personal data.

What is the Commission doing to ensure that the general data protection regulation's focus on issues such as profiling and defining personal data does not impede the work of European cybersecurity companies and promotes an environment that supports them and allows them to grow?