"REFLECTIONS ON PERSONAL DATA PROCESSING THAT IS NECESSARY FOR THE ENTERING OR PERFORMANCE OF A CONTRACT"

Abstract

Even in pandemic times everyday life involves the conclusion of contracts written on paper, which in turn involves the processing of personal data not only for the performance of the contracts to which a data subject is party, but also in order to take steps at the request of the data subject prior to entering into a contract. In this regard Article 6 (1) (b) of the General Data Protection Regulation provides the legal basis that ensures the lawfulness of processing. This short article examines the limits of using this legal basis for personal data processing in the context of the controllers' obligations and the rights of the data subjects. The primary conclusion is that, although any contract can ensure the legality of personal data processing, not all personal data may be necessary for the performance of the contract, in which case another ground of processing must be used for the rest of the personal data processed, which in turn requires a thorough understanding of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 for an implementation of its provisions in their spirit and letter, the more so as an implementation of the General Data Protection Regulation limited to the preparation of documentation on the conformity of processing has no other effect than to turn it into a dead letter.