The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is a significant piece of legislation concerning data protection and privacy for individuals within the European Union (EU) and the European Economic Area (EEA). It also affects businesses outside the EU that offer goods or services to individuals in the EU or monitor their behavior. The GDPR aims to protect the personal data of individuals and give them more control over how their data is used and shared by organizations. The GDPR has several key principles, rights, and obligations that organizations must follow to comply with the law and avoid fines or penalties.
The GDPR was created to replace the 1995 Data Protection Directive, which was adopted at a time when the internet was in its infancy. The Data Protection Directive required each EU country to enact its own data protection laws based on the directive’s principles. However, this resulted in inconsistent and outdated rules across the EU, creating challenges for individuals and businesses alike. The GDPR was designed to harmonize data protection rules across the EU and ensure a consistent level of protection for individuals’ personal data. The GDPR also reflects the changes and challenges brought by new technologies and practices, such as cloud computing, social media, and big data.
The GDPR was adopted by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union on 14 April 2016, it became effective on 25 May 2018, after a two-year transition period. As an EU regulation (instead of a directive), the GDPR is directly applicable with force of law on its own without the need for national implementation. However, it also provides flexibility for individual member states to modify (derogate from) some of its provisions. The GDPR is considered one of the most important and influential data protection laws in the world, and has inspired many other countries and regions to adopt similar or compatible regulations.
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