Police department – Fine (Germany, 2021)

Fine
Bundesbeauftragter für den Datenschutz1 January 2021Germany
final
Fine

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 police officer shared personal information about a drunk driving incident with the offender's mother during an unexpected meeting. Since the mother was not authorized to receive that information, this led to a ruling against the officer. It shows that even casual conversations can breach privacy laws.

What happened

A police officer unlawfully disclosed personal data of a drunk driving incident to the offender's mother.

Who was affected

The drunk driving offender and their mother were affected by the unauthorized disclosure of information.

What the authority found

The authority ruled that the officer violated local data protection laws by sharing information with an unauthorized third party.

Why this matters

This case highlights the risks of sharing personal data without proper authorization. It serves as a warning for all professionals to be cautious about privacy in any situation.

Source verified 10 April 2026
articles corrected
national law identified
Full Legal Summary
Detailed

A police officer had unlawfully disclosed personal data of a drunk driving incident to the offender's mother during a chance encounter. He thought that the mother, as his employer, could prevent a repeat offense by withdrawing the offender's car. However, the mother constitutes an unauthorized third party, meaning that the police officer was not allowed to disclose the information. For this reason, the DPA of Brandenburg imposed a fine for a violation of § 32 (1) BbgDSG. The Brandenburg Data Protection Act (BbgDSG) sets out the supplementary regulations necessary to adapt the GDPR.

Related Enforcement Actions (0)

No other enforcement actions found for Police department in DE

This is the only recorded action for this entity in this jurisdiction.

Details

Fine Date

1 January 2021

Authority

Bundesbeauftragter für den Datenschutz

Enforcement Tracker ID

ETid-1279

About this data

Data: CMS GDPR Enforcement Tracker
Licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
AI-verified and classified

Cite as: Cookie Fines. Police department - Germany (2021). Retrieved from cookiefines.eu

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