The European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) considers that most of their objectives have been met in 2019. This is the result of their 2019 progress report published on 18 March, which should have been presented to the European Parliament in the wake (if the coronavirus pandemic had not occurred).
This document provides an overview of EDPS’ activities in 2019, the last year of a five-year mandate (2015-2019). It shows that the Supervisor has met most of his performance indicators (KPIs), with the exception of the “number of activities focused on cross-disciplinary policy solutions (internal & external)”.
In 2019, the Supervisor’s activities focused on consolidating the achievements of previous years, assessing progress and beginning to set priorities for the future. As a member, together with national data protection authorities, of the European Border Protection Board (EDPB), the EDPS has largely focused on the implementation of the new EU rules on data protection, in particular the General Data Protection Regulation (Regulation 2016/679). The EDPS has also intensified their monitoring activities by launching several surveys on the processing of personal data by the EU institutions.
Looking to the future, Wojciech Wiewiórowski, who has held the position of Supervisor since the death of Giovanni Buttarelli in August 2019, has called for the development of an effective response to the challenges of the digital age. In his view, this response should include ensuring that the new rules on online privacy (ePrivacy) remain on the agenda. (Original version in French by Sophie Petitjean)