EDPB: wish list for harmonising the application of the GDPR and a declaration on the digital euro
On 12 October 2022, the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) adopted a wish list to harmonise administrative procedures between Member States in order to facilitate investigations and sanctions. It also issued a new statement on the digital euro in response to the European Central Bank's initial guidance.
A list of procedures to be harmonised at European level
European data protection authorities have drawn up a list of procedural issues that require harmonisation of national laws in order to ensure better implementation of the GDPR in the European Union. This “wish list”, addressed to the European Commission, is part of the key actions set out in the EDPS Vienna Declaration on law enforcement cooperation.
Priority topics include the investigative powers of data protection authorities, the practical implementation of the cooperation procedure at national level, the status and rights of parties to administrative proceedings before Member State authorities, procedural deadlines, and requirements for the admissibility or rejection of complaints by data protection authorities.
A new declaration on the digital euro
In its statement on the digital euro, the EDPB reiterates the importance of ensuring privacy and data protection by design and by default in this project. The statement comments on the ECB's first guidelines published on 29 September.
The EDPB warns against the use of systematic validation and tracing of all digital euro transactions. In this respect, the EDPB recommends that the digital euro should be available both online and offline, with a threshold below which no tracing is possible, either online or offline, in order to allow full confidentiality of daily transactions.
The EDPB also calls for the development of a specific European legal framework for the digital euro, covering both privacy and anti-money laundering. Finally, the EDPB calls on the European Central Bank and the European Commission to strengthen the public debate on the digital euro project to ensure that it meets the highest standards of privacy and data protection.
This statement follows the EDPB contribution to the European Commission's public consultation on the digital euro submitted in June 2022 and a first letter issued by the EDPB in June 2021 on data protection issues in a potential digital euro.
As a reminder, in July 2021, the European Central Bank decided to launch an experimental phase in the framework of the digital euro project, with a view to deciding on the creation of this digital currency by 2024. The European Commission, for its part, has announced a text on this topic for 2023.
