How Has the General Data Protection Regulation Changed the Routine of a Public Authority in Romania?

Abstract

The changes that have been brought about by the General Data Protection Regulation starting with May 2018 are complex and ambitious. The General Data Protection Regulation is one of the most wide ranging pieces of legislation passed by the EU in recent years, and it introduces many concepts that are yet to be fully discovered in practice, such as the right to be forgotten, data portability and data breach notification. This paper intends to analyze the main obligations that public bodies, particularly, have after the GDPR has entered into force, and to evaluate the impact this legislative act has on the routine activities carried out by public authorities in Romania. To reach our goal, we will make reference to the obligations that are specific to public administration authorities as well as to those that public bodies are exempted from. We will also analyze the national legislative measures adopted in Romania after GDPR started to be in force, and the degree to which these have particularized the way public bodies are allowed and obliged to process personal data in Romania.