Private individual – €500 Fine (Germany, 2021)
General GDPR enforcement action
This case relates to broader data protection obligations, not specifically to cookie or consent banner compliance. It is not included in cookie statistics or the Risk Calculator.
A company employee in Germany was fined for sending sensitive employee data to her personal email without a valid reason. This incident shows the risks of mishandling personal information, even by individuals within a company.
What happened
The employee unlawfully transferred an Excel spreadsheet containing personal data of 56 colleagues to her private email.
Who was affected
The employees whose data was included in the spreadsheet were affected by this unauthorized transfer.
What the authority found
The data protection authority determined that the employee violated data protection rules by transferring personal data without necessity.
Why this matters
This case serves as a reminder for employees to handle personal data carefully and only share it through secure, authorized channels to avoid penalties.
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The DPA from Brandenburg imposed a three-digit fine on a company employee. The individual had sent an Excel spreadsheet with employee data of 56 employees to her private e-mail address from her official computer, although this was not necessary for her official activities. For this reason, the DPA determined that the employee had unlawfully transferred the other employees' data. The spreadsheet included, in addition to the full names of the employees, an overview of vacation days already taken and remaining, sick days accrued, wage data, overtime worked and social security contributions.
Related Enforcement Actions (16)
Other enforcement actions involving Private individual in DE
Fine
€500
Details
Fine Date
1 January 2021
Authority
Bundesbeauftragter für den Datenschutz
Fine Amount
€500
About this data
Cite as: Cookie Fines. Private individual - Germany (2021). Retrieved from cookiefines.eu
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