Bodobalazs: 1 revision imported: GDPRHUB import 2023 04 18

2023-04-18T15:01:35Z

1 revision imported: GDPRHUB import 2023 04 18

New page

{| class="wikitable" style="width: 25%; margin-left: 10px; float:right;"
![[Article 21 GDPR|←]] Article 22 - Automated individual decision-making, including profiling [[Article 23 GDPR|→]]
|-
| style="padding: 20px; background-color:#003399;" |[[File:Gdpricon.png|100px|center|link=Overview_of_GDPR]]
|-
|

<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="border-width: 0px" overflow:auto;">
<div style="font-weight:bold;line-height:1.6;">Chapter 1: General provisions</div>
<div class="mw-collapsible-content">
<small>
[[Article 1 GDPR|Article 1: Subject-matter and objectives]]<br />
[[Article 2 GDPR|Article 2: Material scope]]<br />
[[Article 3 GDPR|Article 3: Territorial scope]]<br />
[[Article 4 GDPR|Article 4: Definitions]]<br />
</small>
</div></div>

<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="border-width: 0px" overflow:auto;">
<div style="font-weight:bold;line-height:1.6;">Chapter 2: Principles</div>
<div class="mw-collapsible-content">
<small>
[[Article 5 GDPR|Article 5: Principles relating to processing of personal data]]<br />
[[Article 6 GDPR|Article 6: Lawfulness of processing]]<br />
[[Article 7 GDPR|Article 7: Conditions for consent]]<br />
[[Article 8 GDPR|Article 8: Conditions applicable to child’s consent in relation to information society services]]<br />
[[Article 9 GDPR|Article 9: Processing of special categories of personal data]]<br />
[[Article 10 GDPR|Article 10: Processing of personal data relating to criminal convictions and offences]]<br />
[[Article 11 GDPR|Article 11: Processing which does not require identification]]<br />
</small>
</div></div>

<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible" style="border-width: 0px" overflow:auto;">
<div style="font-weight:bold;line-height:1.6;">Chapter 3: Rights of the data subject</div>
<div class="mw-collapsible-content">
<small>
[[Article 12 GDPR|Article 12: Transparent information, communication and modalities for the exercise of the rights of the data subject]]<br />
[[Article 13 GDPR|Article 13: Information to be provided where personal data are collected from the data subject]]<br />
[[Article 14 GDPR|Article 14: Information to be provided where personal data have not been obtained from the data subject]]<br />
[[Article 15 GDPR|Article 15: Right of access by the data subject]]<br />
[[Article 16 GDPR|Article 16: Right to rectification]]<br />
[[Article 17 GDPR|Article 17: Right to erasure (‘right to be forgotten’)]]<br />
[[Article 18 GDPR|Article 18: Right to restriction of processing]]<br />
[[Article 19 GDPR|Article 19: Notification obligation regarding rectification or erasure of personal data or restriction of processing]]<br />
[[Article 20 GDPR|Article 20: Right to data portability]]<br />
[[Article 21 GDPR|Article 21: Right to object]]<br />
[[Article 22 GDPR|Article 22: Automated individual decision-making, including profiling]]<br />
[[Article 23 GDPR|Article 23: Restrictions]]<br />
</small>
</div></div>

<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="border-width: 0px" overflow:auto;">
<div style="font-weight:bold;line-height:1.6;">Chapter 4: Controller and processor</div>
<div class="mw-collapsible-content">
<small>
[[Article 24 GDPR|Article 24: Responsibility of the controller]]<br />
[[Article 25 GDPR|Article 25: Data protection by design and by default]]<br />
[[Article 26 GDPR|Article 26: Joint controllers]]<br />
[[Article 27 GDPR|Article 27: Representatives of controllers or processors not established in the Union]]<br />
[[Article 28 GDPR|Article 28: Processor]]<br />
[[Article 29 GDPR|Article 29: Processing under the authority of the controller or processor]]<br />
[[Article 30 GDPR|Article 30: Records of processing activities]]<br />
[[Article 31 GDPR|Article 31: Cooperation with the supervisory authority]]<br />
[[Article 32 GDPR|Article 32: Security of processing]]<br />
[[Article 33 GDPR|Article 33: Notification of a personal data breach to the supervisory authority]]<br />
[[Article 34 GDPR|Article 34: Communication of a personal data breach to the data subject]]<br />
[[Article 35 GDPR|Article 35: Data protection impact assessment]]<br />
[[Article 36 GDPR|Article 36: Prior consultation]]<br />
[[Article 37 GDPR|Article 37: Designation of the data protection officer]]<br />
[[Article 38 GDPR|Article 38: Position of the data protection officer]]<br />
[[Article 39 GDPR|Article 39: Tasks of the data protection officer]]<br />
[[Article 40 GDPR|Article 40: Codes of conduct]]<br />
[[Article 41 GDPR|Article 41: Monitoring of approved codes of conduct]]<br />
[[Article 42 GDPR|Article 42: Certification]]<br />
[[Article 43 GDPR|Article 43: Certification bodies]]<br />
</small>
</div></div>

<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="border-width: 0px" overflow:auto;">
<div style="font-weight:bold;line-height:1.6;">Chapter 5: Transfers of personal data</div>
<div class="mw-collapsible-content">
<small>
[[Article 44 GDPR|Article 44: General principle for transfers]]<br />
[[Article 45 GDPR|Article 45: Transfers on the basis of an adequacy decision]]<br />
[[Article 46 GDPR|Article 46: Transfers subject to appropriate safeguards]]<br />
[[Article 47 GDPR|Article 47: Binding corporate rules]]<br />
[[Article 48 GDPR|Article 48: Transfers or disclosures not authorised by Union law]]<br />
[[Article 49 GDPR|Article 49: Derogations for specific situations]]<br />
[[Article 50 GDPR|Article 50: International cooperation for the protection of personal data]]<br />
</small>
</div></div>

<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="border-width: 0px" overflow:auto;">
<div style="font-weight:bold;line-height:1.6;">Chapter 6: Supervisory authorities</div>
<div class="mw-collapsible-content">
<small>
[[Article 51 GDPR|Article 51: Supervisory authority]]<br />
[[Article 52 GDPR|Article 52: Independence]]<br />
[[Article 53 GDPR|Article 53: General conditions for the members of the supervisory authority]]<br />
[[Article 54 GDPR|Article 54: Rules on the establishment of the supervisory authority]]<br />
[[Article 55 GDPR|Article 55: Competence]]<br />
[[Article 56 GDPR|Article 56: Competence of the lead supervisory authority]]<br />
[[Article 57 GDPR|Article 57: Tasks]]<br />
[[Article 58 GDPR|Article 58: Powers]]<br />
[[Article 59 GDPR|Article 59: Activity reports]]<br />
</small>
</div></div>

<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="border-width: 0px" overflow:auto;">
<div style="font-weight:bold;line-height:1.6;">Chapter 7: Cooperation and consistency</div>
<div class="mw-collapsible-content">
<small>
[[Article 60 GDPR|Article 60: Cooperation between the lead supervisory authority and the other supervisory authorities concerned]]<br />
[[Article 61 GDPR|Article 61: Mutual assistance]]<br />
[[Article 62 GDPR|Article 62: Joint operations of supervisory authorities]]<br />
[[Article 63 GDPR|Article 63: Consistency mechanism]]<br />
[[Article 64 GDPR|Article 64: Opinion of the Board]]<br />
[[Article 65 GDPR|Article 65: Dispute resolution by the Board]]<br />
[[Article 66 GDPR|Article 66: Urgency procedure]]<br />
[[Article 67 GDPR|Article 67: Exchange of information]]<br />
[[Article 68 GDPR|Article 68: European Data Protection Board]]<br />
[[Article 69 GDPR|Article 69: Independence]]<br />
[[Article 70 GDPR|Article 70: Tasks of the Board]]<br />
[[Article 71 GDPR|Article 71: Reports]]<br />
[[Article 72 GDPR|Article 72: Procedure]]<br />
[[Article 73 GDPR|Article 73: Chair]]<br />
[[Article 74 GDPR|Article 74: Tasks of the Chair]]<br />
[[Article 75 GDPR|Article 75: Secretariat]]<br />
[[Article 76 GDPR|Article 76: Confidentiality]]<br />
</small>
</div></div>

<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="border-width: 0px" overflow:auto;">
<div style="font-weight:bold;line-height:1.6;">Chapter 8: Remedies, liability and penalties</div>
<div class="mw-collapsible-content">
<small>
[[Article 77 GDPR|Article 77: Right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority]]<br />
[[Article 78 GDPR|Article 78: Right to an effective judicial remedy against a supervisory authority]]<br />
[[Article 79 GDPR|Article 79: Right to an effective judicial remedy against a controller or processor]]<br />
[[Article 80 GDPR|Article 80: Representation of data subjects]]<br />
[[Article 81 GDPR|Article 81: Suspension of proceedings]]<br />
[[Article 82 GDPR|Article 82: Right to compensation and liability]]<br />
[[Article 83 GDPR|Article 83: General conditions for imposing administrative fines]]<br />
[[Article 84 GDPR|Article 84: Penalties]]<br />
</small>
</div></div>

<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="border-width: 0px" overflow:auto;">
<div style="font-weight:bold;line-height:1.6;">Chapter 9: Specific processing situations</div>
<div class="mw-collapsible-content">
<small>
[[Article 85 GDPR|Article 85: Processing and freedom of expression and information]]<br />
[[Article 86 GDPR|Article 86: Processing and public access to official documents]]<br />
[[Article 87 GDPR|Article 87: Processing of the national identification number]]<br />
[[Article 88 GDPR|Article 88: Processing in the context of employment]]<br />
[[Article 89 GDPR|Article 89: Safeguards and derogations relating to processing for archiving purposes in the public interest, scientific or historical research purposes or statistical purposes]]<br />
[[Article 90 GDPR|Article 90: Obligations of secrecy]]<br />
[[Article 91 GDPR|Article 91: Existing data protection rules of churches and religious associations]]<br />
</small>
</div></div>

<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="border-width: 0px" overflow:auto;">
<div style="font-weight:bold;line-height:1.6;">Chapter 10: Delegated and implementing acts</div>
<div class="mw-collapsible-content">
<small>
[[Article 92 GDPR|Article 92: Exercise of the delegation]]<br />
[[Article 93 GDPR|Article 93: Committee procedure]]<br />
</small>
</div></div>

<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="border-width: 0px" overflow:auto;">
<div style="font-weight:bold;line-height:1.6;">Chapter 11: Final provisions</div>
<div class="mw-collapsible-content">
<small>
[[Article 94 GDPR|Article 94: Repeal of Directive 95: /46: /EC]]<br />
[[Article 95 GDPR|Article 95: Relationship with Directive 20: 02: /58: /EC]]<br />
[[Article 96 GDPR|Article 96: Relationship with previously concluded Agreements]]<br />
[[Article 97 GDPR|Article 97: Commission reports]]<br />
[[Article 98 GDPR|Article 98: Review of other Union legal acts on data protection]]<br />
[[Article 99 GDPR|Article 99: Entry into force and application]]<br />
</small>
</div>
</div>
|}

==Legal Text==
<br /><center>'''Article 22 - Automated individual decision-making, including profiling'''</center>

<span id="1">1. The data subject shall have the right not to be subject to a decision based solely on automated processing, including profiling, which produces legal effects concerning him or her or similarly significantly affects him or her.</span>

<span id="2">2. Paragraph 1 shall not apply if the decision:</span>

<span id="2a">(a) is necessary for entering into, or performance of, a contract between the data subject and a data controller;</span>

<span id="2b">(b) is authorised by Union or Member State law to which the controller is subject and which also lays down suitable measures to safeguard the data subject's rights and freedoms and legitimate interests; or</span>

<span id="2c">(c) is based on the data subject's explicit consent.</span>

<span id="3">3. In the cases referred to in points (a) and (c) of paragraph 2, the data controller shall implement suitable measures to safeguard the data subject's rights and freedoms and legitimate interests, at least the right to obtain human intervention on the part of the controller, to express his or her point of view and to contest the decision.</span>

<span id="4">4. Decisions referred to in paragraph 2 shall not be based on special categories of personal data referred to in Article 9(1), unless point (a) or (g) of Article 9(2) applies and suitable measures to safeguard the data subject's rights and freedoms and legitimate interests are in place.</span>

==Relevant Recitals==
{{Recital/4 GDPR}}{{Recital/24 GDPR}}{{Recital/38 GDPR}}{{Recital/60 GDPR}}{{Recital/63 GDPR}}{{Recital/71 GDPR}}{{Recital/72 GDPR}}{{Recital/91 GDPR}}

==Commentary==

Article 22 GDPR has its roots in Articles 12a and 15 of the 95/46/EC Data Protection Directive (DPD). One of the main differences is that the GDPR has a broader scope of application, since it applies to “automated processing, including profiling”. In contrast, the DPD provision was only applicable if a form of profiling was involved.<ref>Article 20 of GDPR proposal, COM(2012) 11 final (available [https://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=COM:2012:0011:FIN:EN:PDF here]).</ref> This difference in scope can be noticed between the initial proposal of the Commission, in which Article 22 was titled “Measures based on profiling" and the final wording of the GDPR, which extends the scope of Article 22 GDPR to include automated decisions which are not based on profiling. In contrast to the DPD, Article 22(4) GDPR also explicitly addresses the use of sensitive data by laying down a qualified prohibition of decisions based on categories of data listed under [[Article 9 GDPR|Article 9(1) GDPR]].

EDPB Guidelines: on this Article, please see [https://edpb.europa.eu/our-work-tools/our-documents/guidelines/automated-decision-making-and-profiling_en Automated decision-making and profiling]

===(1) Prohibition on Automated Decision-Making ===

There have been conflicting arguments as to whether Article 22(1) GDPR lays down a right or a general prohibition. On the one hand, if the provision is interpreted as a right, then the data subject would have to actively exercise the right in order to be protected from the types of impactful, automated decisions that Article 22 GDPR deals with. The main argument invoked by proponents of this approach is a strictly literal interpretation of the word "right" in the provision.<ref>''Bygrave'', in Kuner, Bygrave, Docksey, The EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR): A Commentary, Article 22 GDPR, p. 531 (Oxford University Press 2020).</ref> On the other hand, Article 22(1) GDPR can be framed as a general prohibition. This interpretation seems more in line with the purpose of the provision, which seeks to protect data subjects from the general possibility of being subject to decisions covered by Article 22 GDPR. The WP29 Guidelines on Automated individual decision-making and Profiling,<ref>WP29, ‘Guidelines on Automated individual decision-making and Profiling for the purposes of Regulation 2016/679’, 17/EN WP251 rev.01, 6 February 2018, (available [https://ec.europa.eu/newsroom/article29/redirection/document/49826 here]).</ref> seems to take this broader and more comprehensive approach: “''The term 'right' in the provision does not mean that Article 22(1) applies only when actively invoked by the data subject. Article 22(1) establishes a general prohibition for decision-making based solely on automated processing. This prohibition applies whether or not the data subject takes action regarding the processing of their personal data''”.<ref>The WP29 supports this argument by relying on the principles of the GDPR and its aim to give data subjects control over their personal data. Furthermore, the WP29 makes a reference to Recital 71 GDPR, which implies that decisions under Article 22(1) GDPR are generally not allowed, by contrasting these with decisions regulated by Article 22(2) GDPR which should, “''however''”, be allowed. WP29, ‘Guidelines on Automated individual decision-making and Profiling for the purposes of Regulation 2016/679’, 17/EN WP251 rev.01, 6 February 2018, p. 19 (available [https://ec.europa.eu/newsroom/article29/redirection/document/49826 here]).</ref>
====Scope====
The title of Article 22 GDPR mentions automated “individual” decision-making, which might suggest that the scope of the provision does not extend to decisions or processing operations which produce effects for groups of data subjects. Following this reasoning, Article 22 GDPR would not be applicable if decisions affect multiple data subjects or groups of individuals connected by common characteristics, such as age, gender, or postal code. However, considering the realities of machine learning and Big Data, pertinent arguments have also been made supporting the view that Article 22 GDPR should apply to group decision-making.<ref>See ''Veale, Edwards'', Clarity, surprises, and further questions in the Article 29 Working Party draft guidance on automated decision-making and profiling, in ''Computer Law & Security Review'', 34, (2018), p. 402: “''Consider individuals classified by categories such as "man/woman", "married/single/divorced", or "high/low income". Solely automated decisions could be taken for all "divorced low-income women," supposedly rendering Article 22 GDPR inapplicable, despite their potentially significant effects. In such situations, decisions could be treated as a bundle of individual decisions, which makes it more difficult to circumvent Article 22 GDPR, and thereby better protects the fundamental rights of data subjects. However, in the absence of any CJEU decisions on this matter so far, it is still disputed whether Article 22(1) GDPR should apply to group decisions''”.</ref>

====Decision Based Solely on Automated Processing====

======Decision======
The first element required to trigger Article 22 GPDR is the presence of a "decision", which can be interpreted in a broad sense.<ref>''Bygrave'', in Kuner, Bygrave, Docksey, The EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR): A Commentary, Article 22 GDPR, p. 532 (Oxford University Press 2020).</ref> Examples of a decision can be official acts of public authorities such as decisions on tax returns,<ref>''Brkan'', Do Algorithms Rule the World? Algorithmic Decision-Making and Data Protection in the Framework of the GDPR and Beyond, in ''International Journal of Law and Information Technology'', 27 (2019), p. 102.</ref> as well as automatic refusals of online credit applications or similar decisions in the context of e-recruiting practices.<ref>Recital 71 GDPR.</ref> In a more general sense, decisions could also be seen as a particular attitude or position taken with regards to a person, if this position is at least likely to be acted upon.<ref>''Mendoza, Bygrave'', The Right not to be Subject to Automated Decisions based on Profiling, in ''University of Oslo Faculty of Law Legal Studies Research Paper Series'' No. 2017-20 (2017), pp. 10-11.</ref> Although there does not seem to be a specific requirement for the decision to be formalised in a particular way, it should at least be distinguishable from other stages of the decision-making process.
======Solely======

To begin with, this second element of Article 22(1) GDPR will depend on whether human intervention is even possible from a technical perspective, or whether the decision-making process is constructed in a solely algorithmic way with no room for human involvement. If the process technically allows for human intervention, then an assessment has to be made as to whether the action undertaken by a human is “''meaningful''” or merely a procedural “''token gesture''”.<ref>WP29, ‘Guidelines on Automated individual decision-making and Profiling for the purposes of Regulation 2016/679’, 17/EN WP251 rev.01, 6 February 2018, p. 21 (available [https://ec.europa.eu/newsroom/article29/redirection/document/49826 here]).</ref> In order to meet the first criterion, the intervention must be “''carried out by someone who has the authority and competence to change the decision''”. Furthermore, the human involved must not only have the power to change the decision, but actually exercise this competence by ”''consider''[ing''] all the relevant data''” and verifying the substance and correctness of the machine-generated decision.<ref>WP29, ‘Guidelines on Automated individual decision-making and Profiling for the purposes of Regulation 2016/679’, 17/EN WP251 rev.01, 6 February 2018, p. 21 (available [https://ec.europa.eu/newsroom/article29/redirection/document/49826 here]); ''Bygrave'', in Kuner, Bygrave, Docksey, The EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR): A Commentary, Article 22 GDPR, p. 533 (Oxford University Press 2020).</ref>
======Automated Processing======

The "automated processing" criterion in Article 22(1) GDPR is related to the final stage of the processing, which results in a solely automated decision based on already existing data. By contrast, the methods of collecting the initial data sources must not necessarily be automated, and can be semi-automated or even manual.<ref>''Bygrave'', in Kuner, Bygrave, Docksey, The EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR): A Commentary, Article 22 GDPR, p. 533 (Oxford University Press 2020).</ref> Furthermore, the automated decision must not entirely be based on personal data related to the person affected by the decision, and can also include non-personal data, or personal data related to other individuals.
====Legal or Similarly Significant Effects====
======Legal Effects======
A decision has legal effects on a data subject when it is binding and affects the person’s legal rights or interests. Examples can be the cancellation of a contract, the decision of a tax authority on an individual’s tax return, or the denial of a social benefit granted by law.<ref>WP29, ‘Guidelines on Automated individual decision-making and Profiling for the purposes of Regulation 2016/679’, 17/EN WP251 rev.01, 6 February 2018, p. 21 (available here); ''Brkan'', Do Algorithms Rule the World? Algorithmic Decision-Making and Data Protection in the Framework of the GDPR and Beyond, in ''International Journal of Law and Information Technology'', 27 (2019), p. 102.</ref>

======Similarly Significant Effects======

In principle, satisfying this criterion means that the impacts of the decision must be considerable despite not changing the legal position of the individual. While it can be difficult to establish this in practice, according to the WP29 some guiding criteria for similarly significant effects include:

*significantly affects the circumstances, behaviour or choices of the individuals concerned;
*has a prolonged or permanent impact on the data subject; or
*at its most extreme, leads to the exclusion or discrimination of individuals.

The WP29 also gives examples of decisions that can have effects which are similarly significant to legal ones. These include decisions that:

*affect someone’s financial circumstances, such as their eligibility to credit;
*affect someone’s access to health services;
*deny someone an employment opportunity or put them at a serious disadvantage;
*affect someone’s access to education, for example university admissions.

In any case, the decision should have more than just a trivial effect, and impact someone’s position either in relation to other persons, or to access a service or opportunity. For example, Recital 71 GDPR mentions the “automatic refusal of an online credit application or e-recruiting practices without human intervention”.

Decisions resulting in targeted advertisement based on profiling could also significantly affect individuals, for example, when someone is targeted with high interest loans because they are known to be in financial difficulties and are particularly susceptible to accept such offers. In this context, the WP29 lays down a non-exhaustive list of characteristics that can be decisive in the assessment of each case, such as:

*the intrusiveness of the profiling process, including the tracking of individuals across different websites, devices and services;
*the expectations and wishes of the individuals concerned;
*the way the advert is delivered; or
*using knowledge of the vulnerabilities of the data subjects targeted.

===(2) Exceptions===
====(a) Contract====

The first exception from the prohibition laid down in Article 22(1) GDPR applies if the decision is necessary for entering into, or performance of, a contract between the data subject and the controller. It is unclear how the "necessity" criterion should be interpreted. A strictly textual interpretation would lead to most examples of solely automated decisions not being considered necessary. For example, while assessing if an individual’s credit risk is necessary for a bank in order to protect its investments, algorithmic credit scoring is not in itself necessary, since an assessment can also be carried by humans. As different arguments could be made for the threshold and meaning of the "necessity" criterion, this aspect will need to be clarified by courts.

Furthermore, an analysis of [[Article 6 GDPR|Articles 6(1)(b)]] and 22(2)(a) GDPR seems to indicate a difference in the scope of the two provisions with regards to the necessity of the processing for entering into a contract. Whereas for [[Article 6 GDPR|Article 6(1)(b) GDPR]] the processing would have to be necessary not only for entering into or the performance of a contract, but also in order to take steps at the request of the data subject prior to entering the contract, Article 22(2)(a) GDPR does not mention this additional aspect. In any case, the application of Article 22(2)(a) GDPR is always subjected to the presence of “suitable measures to safeguard the data subject's rights and freedoms and legitimate interests, at least the right to obtain human intervention on the part of the controller, to express his or her point of view and to contest the decision” (cf. Article 22(3) GDPR).
====(b) Authorised by Law====

The second exemption in Article 22(2) GDPR is also subject to the presence of “suitable measures to safeguard the data subject's rights and freedoms and legitimate interests”. However, it seems that such measures do not necessarily need to be the same as those foreseen by Article 22(3) GDPR. Instead, Members States have discretion in this aspect.

====(c) Explicit Consent====

The wording of Article 22(2)(c) GDPR (“explicit consent”) results in the same standard for this requirement as [[Article 9 GDPR|Article 9(2)(a) GDPR]]. Particular attention must be given to consent being freely given in the context of entering into or performance of a contract.<ref>See also [https://gdprhub.eu/Article%204%20GDPR Articles 4(11)] and [https://gdprhub.eu/Article%207%20GDPR 7(4) GDPR], as well as Recital 43 GDPR.</ref> Indeed, discussions on whether consent is freely given, including in line with [[Article 9 GDPR|Articles 9(2)]] and 22(2(c) GDPR, will lead to assessing the “necessity” element. In this context, it must be assessed whether the decision is necessary for the “performance of a contract, including the provision of a service” as mandated by [[Article 7 GDPR|Article 7(4) GDPR]]. However, this provision does not mention entering into a contract, which would seem to exclude examples such as online credit applications where the algorithmic decision occurs in order to enter the contract and not to perform it. Furthermore, issues could arise with decisions based on profiling, where a data subject might have given their consent to the profiling, for example by accepting a cookie, but not to the decision-making process resulting from it. In this context, data subjects might not even be aware of the solely automated decision-making process occurring, in which case the consent to the profiling would not be considered as satisfying the requirements of Article 22(2)(c) GDPR.<ref>''Brkan'', Do Algorithms Rule the World? Algorithmic Decision-Making and Data Protection in the Framework of the GDPR and Beyond, in ''International Journal of Law and Information Technology'', 27 (2019), p. 106.</ref> Finally, decisions based on explicit consent are also subjected to the safeguards laid down in Article 22(3) GDPR.

===(3) Safeguards===

Article 22(3) GDPR lays down a non-exhaustive list of safeguards which should always be available to the data subjects in case of automated decision-making carried out under Article 22(2)(a) and (c) GDPR. The list is not exhaustive and includes the right to obtain human intervention on the part of the controller, to express the data subject’s point of view and to contest the decision.

These rights maintain a unifying element: in order to be exercised, they all require some kind of prior information that only the controller can provide. Take, for example, the right to challenge the decision. In order to do so, it is necessary to know which elements have been taken into account by the algorithm and what its logic is, albeit in summary form. Conversely, it would be logically impossible to challenge the decision. The same applies to the right to obtain human intervention. In order to meaningfully exercise it, it is necessary to know at least what procedure the data subject has to follow and which criteria guide the reviewer’s decision. Otherwise, it would be completely impossible to express one's own point of view.

Pursuant to Article 12(1), which expressly refers to Article 22, the controller "''shall take appropriate measures''" to provide the information required "''in a concise, transparent, intelligible and easily accessible form, using clear and plain language''". In the light of the above, the controller is obliged to provide complete information in relation to all elements allowing an informed exercise of the rights provided for in Article 22(3) and, more generally, to all elements of automated decision-making, including profiling. This leaves the door open for additional safeguards, such as the potential "''right to explanation''" regarding the automated decision-making, the profiling and the underlying algorithmic logic that could be inferred from Recital 71 GDPR.

However, clarifications will still be needed as to how the safeguards already mentioned by Article 22(3) GDPR can be operationalised and what their outcome will be. On the operational side it would be questionable how some systems would even allow for human intervention in practice, for example when the website or platform does not technically allow this. On the other hand, with regards to the legal consequences of the data subject expressing their point of view or contesting the decision, it is not clear from this provision how or by who contentious issues should be resolved in practice.<ref>''Brkan'', Do Algorithms Rule the World? Algorithmic Decision-Making and Data Protection in the Framework of the GDPR and Beyond, in ''International Journal of Law and Information Technology'', 27 (2019), p. 106.</ref>

===(4) Qualified Prohibition of Using Special Categories of Data===
Explicit consent in the context of Article 22(4) GDPR should be interpreted in a similar manner as to Article 22(2)(c) GDPR. With regards to the “suitable measures to safeguard the data subject's rights and freedoms and legitimate interests”, these seem to have the same scope and interpretation as in Article 22(3) GDPR.

==Decisions==
→ You can find all related decisions in [[:Category:Article 22 GDPR]]

==References==
<references />
[[Category:GDPR Articles]]
<span id="r24">[[Category:GDPR Articles]]

Article 22 GDPR - Revision history

Bodobalazs: 1 revision imported: GDPRHUB import 2023 04 18