Andmekaitsereeglitele

Andmekaitsereeglitele, or to data protection regulations, refers to the body of rules that govern the processing of personal data. The aim is to safeguard individuals’ privacy while allowing legitimate data processing for purposes such as services, employment, or research. In the European Union, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is the central harmonizing law, setting common principles and rights and requiring safeguards for cross-border transfers. Member states may supplement GDPR with national provisions, including specific supervisory arrangements and sector-specific rules.

Core principles include lawfulness, fairness and transparency; purpose limitation; data minimization; accuracy; storage limitation; integrity and confidentiality; and accountability. Data controllers determine purposes and means of processing, while processors act on their instructions. Data subjects have rights to access, rectify, erase, restrict processing, data portability, object, and withdraw consent where appropriate. Organizations must implement technical and organizational measures, conduct data protection impact assessments for high-risk processing, and notify authorities and affected individuals of certain data breaches.

Cross-border transfers to third countries require adequacy decisions or safeguards such as standard contractual clauses. In Estonia, the national implementation is overseen by the Data Protection Inspectorate (Andmekaitseinspektsioon), with domestic laws like the Personal Data Protection Act complementing GDPR. Compliance is an ongoing process involving documentation, training, audits, and response plans; non-compliance can lead to fines and corrective actions.