Also
participating in the opening session was
Andrea
Stazi, Head of Regulatory Affairs at Google for Southern Europe and
Academic Outreach for Europe, who emphasised that "transparency" is
the key word in the interaction between data protection and consumer
protection. Stazi also pointed out that within the issue surrounding
personalised advertising online, which is intimately linked to data protection
and consumer protection, dialogue between different actors is essential to find
the best solution in this area.
Representatives
of other institutions also participated as speakers, providing national
experiences that were of great interest. Charo
Fernando (Autocontrol, Spain), Paulo
Fonseca (Portuguese Association for Consumer Protection), and Georgios Kontis (Greek Data Protection
Authority) presented key elements of what their southern EU institutions are
contributing in their respective areas.
Experts
from the academic university world also presented issues essential for
understanding the relationship between consumer protection and the protection
of personal data, providing an analysis that has clearly contributed to the
debate in this field. Members of the Board of the South EU Google Data
Governance Chair, Maria da Graça Canto
Moniz (Nova University of Lisbon) and Georgios
Yannopoulos (University of Athens), as well as law professors from
different Italian universities, Alberto
De Franceschi (University of Ferrara), Giorgio
Giannone Codiglione (University of Salerno), and Giuseppe Versaci (University of Insubria), made presentations that
shed light on the issues raised by the seminar.
After
the interventions of the speakers, José
Luis Piñar, Professor of Administrative Law at CEU San Pablo University and
director of the Board of the South EU Google Data Governance Chair, presented
the final conclusions of the Seminar, highlighting the convergences and
divergences between data protection and consumer protection. He underlined the
main aspects discussed by the speakers in a seminar in which there was no lack
of observations and questions that highlight the
special relationship between both branches of law. Professor Piñar raised the
question of whether it might be interesting for the right to data protection to
incorporate some issues from consumer protection that might be relevant. He
also pointed out that the term "consumer" does not appear in the
GDPR, perhaps intending to emphasise that data protection does not necessarily
have to be linked to consumer rights (a concept closer to the American
conception of data protection), but rather is configured as a true autonomous
fundamental right. He also emphasised the risks for individuals of having their
intentions manipulated in the processing of their personal data.
The
work of the South EU Google Data Governance Chair will continue in the coming
months with the publication of a book that will bring together the articles
written by the speakers who participated in this seminar held in Rome, as well
as the organisation of several academic and scientific activities that will
take place in Athens, Brussels, and Madrid.
About the South EU Google Data
Governance Chair:
Established in 2021, the South EU Google Data Governance Chair is a European
forum for reflection and research on data governance, aimed at providing a framework
for analysing the future challenges facing the European sphere in areas such as
Big Data, Data Driven Innovation, Artificial Intelligence, and international
data flows. The Board of the South EU Google Data Governance Chair is led by
José Luis Piñar Mañas, Professor of Administrative Law at the CEU-San Pablo
University in Madrid. The Board also includes professors Maria da Graça Canto
Moniz (Nova University of Lisbon), Georgios Yannopoulos (University of Athens),
and Vincenzo Zeno-Zencovich (RomaTre University).
For more information, please visit:
https://southeugooglechair.com/the-chair/