Requested Detail on Steps Taken for Information Confidentiality Maintainance by the Commission.
In a conversation with Johanna Henkel-Waidhofer, Data Protection Commissioner Tobias Keber expressed his opposition to the bundling of data protection supervision for the economy solely at the federal level. This stance comes as part of the future German government's plans to centralize data protection oversight in one federal authority for the economy.
Keber's independent authority, based in Baden-Württemberg, has been a pioneer in appointing data protection officers since the 1980s. However, the importance of data protection has decreased over the years due to factors such as technological progress driven by artificial intelligence.
Keber's authority works on digital culture techniques, informs, sensitizes, and organizes an annual AI week for experts and citizens. One of their initiatives is the "Year of the Digital Spring Clean" in 2025, which aims to raise awareness about data waste and encourage deletions. The campaign has garnered the support of 32 supervisory authorities in Europe.
Despite the criticism that data protection is bureaucratic and hinders innovations, Keber believes that this notion is not entirely accurate. He argues that data protection is a modern European fundamental right anchored in the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights.
Keber's authority provides advice on everyday questions such as encrypting USB sticks and hard drives, knowing what data is on them, and managing email inboxes. He believes that on-site advice in existing structures is a strength, particularly for small businesses and startups in Baden-Württemberg.
In addition, Keber's authority offers an information brochure and free training to support municipalities. He emphasizes the importance of informing decision-makers about the importance of protecting personal freedom. The goal, according to Keber, is to ensure that data protection and innovation succeed together.
The coalition agreement proposes a limited bundling of data protection supervision for the economy at the federal level, a proposal that Keber believes is the wrong way. He argues that supervision needs to remain more distributed and specialized to effectively address the complexity of data protection challenges.
Logging complaints is about uncovering unjustified access and identifying gaps, not bureaucratic. Keber's authority works on these issues to maintain the privacy and security of citizens' personal data.
The abolition of the obligation for small and medium-sized enterprises to appoint data protection officers is an old idea that Keber believes would lead to significantly more effort and a decrease in data security. He argues that the current system provides a valuable resource for these businesses to ensure they are compliant with data protection laws.
In conclusion, Data Protection Commissioner Tobias Keber is advocating for a more decentralized approach to data protection oversight, emphasizing the importance of maintaining specialized and distributed supervision to effectively address the complexity of data protection challenges.
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