The European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) is a Member of the European Data Protection Board. In addition, the EDPS provides the EDPB Secretariat. The Secretariat offers administrative and logistic support to the EDPB, performs analytical work and contributes to the EDPB’s tasks.
Although staff at the Secretariat is employed by the EDPS, staff members only work under the instructions of the Chair of the EDPB.
The EDPB aims to ensure the consistent application of the General Data Protection Regulation and of the Law Enforcement Directive in the European Economic Area (EEA). The EDPB also looks into the application of certain aspects of the ePrivacy Directive.
Our main tasks and duties are:
providing general guidance (including guidelines, recommendations and best practices) to clarify the law and to promote a common understanding of EU data protection laws;
adopting opinions addressed to the European Commission or to the national Data Protection Authorities (DPAs):
to advise the European Commission on any issue related to the protection of personal data and newly proposed legislation in the European Union (Art. 70 GDPR). In some instances, we issue Joint Opinions together with the EDPS (Art.42 of Regulation 2018/1725);
to ensure consistency of the activities of national data protection authorities (DPAs) on cross-border matters (Art. 64 GDPR). If authorities fail to respect an opinion issued by the EDPB, we may adopt a binding decision;
adopting binding decisions addressed to the national DPAs and aiming to settle disputes between them when they cooperate in cross-border cases, with the purpose of ensuring the correct and consistent application of the GDPR in individual cases;
promoting and supporting the cooperation among national DPAs.
Can I lodge a complaint with the EDPB?
No. The EDPB does not handle complaints or conduct investigations. If you believe your data protection rights have been violated you can contact the organisation holding your data, contact your national data protection authority (DPA), or go to a national court.
How does cross-border cooperation work under the GDPR?
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) requires the Data Protection Authority (DPA) of the European Economic Area (EEA) to cooperate closely - under the umbrella of the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) - to ensure the consistent application of the GDPR and the protection of individuals’ data protection rights across the EEA. One of their tasks is to coordinate decision-making in cross-border data processing cases. A processing is cross-border when:
data processing takes place in more than one country;
or it substantially affects or it is likely to substantially affect individuals in more than one country.
Under the so-called one-stop-shop mechanism Art. 60 GDPR, the Lead Supervisory Authority (LSA) acts as the main point of contact for the controller or processor for a given processing, while the Concerned Supervisory Authorities (CSAs) act as the main point of contact for individuals in the territory of their Member State. The LSA is the authority in charge of leading the cooperation process. It will share relevant information with the CSAs, carry out the investigations, prepare the draft decision relating to the case, and cooperate with the other CSAs in an endeavour to reach consensus on this draft decision.
I have received a communication from someone claiming to be working for the EDPB informing me that I am not in compliance with the GDPR, is this something the EDPB does?
Please note that the EDPB does not contact individuals, via phone or other means of communication, to inform them of such matters.
Therefore, it could be that the call you received represents a phishing attack targeting you abusing our name.
The dispute resolution mechanism of Art. 65 GDPR has been triggered - what happens next?
Within one month from the referral of the subject matter, the EDPB must adopt a decision by a two-thirds majority.
The one-month deadline to adopt this binding decision can be extended by another month, if the case is complex. When the EDPB is not able to reach a decision within the abovementioned period, the decision must be adopted by a simple majority within two additional weeks. Should the members of the EDPB be split, the decision will be adopted by the vote of the EDPB Chair.
The EDPB has adopted its binding decision: when is it notified to the relevant national Data Protection Authorities (DPAs), in which language and what happens next?
Once the EDPB has adopted a binding decision, the EDPB Chair notifies the binding decision to the relevant national Data Protection Authorities (DPAs) without undue delay.
Prior to the notification, the binding decision is translated into the languages of the relevant national DPAs that have to adopt a final decision or take measures at national level on the basis of the binding decision1. Translation and proofreading can take a few weeks. In any case, the English version of the decision is the only authentic language version.
Next step for the relevant Data Protection Authorities (DPAs)
Once the relevant SAs have been notified of the binding decision, a decision has to be adopted at national level to implement the content of the binding decision. This decision will be adopted without undue delay and at the latest one month after the EDPB has notified its decision. For cross-border cases where no consensus was found (Art. 65.1 (a) GDPR), the final decision will be addressed to the controller or processor and, where relevant, to the complainant.
Please see paragraphs 6 and 7 of Art. 11 of the EDPB Rules of Procedure. In exceptional cases, other Concerned Supervisory Authority (CSAs) can request, providing the reasons, an urgent translation in their official EU language(s) no later than at the moment of adoption of the binding decision.
The European Data Protection Board (EDPB) is an independent European body, which contributes to the consistent application of data protection rules throughout the European Union, and promotes cooperation between the EU’s data protection authorities (DPAs), as well as the DPAs of Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway (the European Economic Area or EEA).
What is the EDPS?
The European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) is the European Union’s (EU) independent data protection authority.
The EDPS is responsible for monitoring the processing of personal data by the EU institutions, bodies, offices and agencies (EUIs) as well as providing advice on policies and legislation that affect privacy and cooperating with similar authorities to ensure consistent data protection.