G.O.L. Impresa Sociale S.r.l. – Violation Found (Italy, 2022)
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.
G.O.L. Impresa Sociale S.r.l. published a news article that included sensitive personal information about a high school director and a student. The Italian DPA investigated whether this publication violated privacy rules, balancing it against freedom of expression.
What happened
A news company published an article revealing personal details about a high school director and a student involved in a scandal.
Who was affected
The high school director and the student mentioned in the article, as well as the news company that published the story.
What the authority found
The Italian DPA launched an investigation into the publication to assess compliance with GDPR regarding sensitive personal data.
Why this matters
This case underscores the tension between privacy rights and freedom of expression in journalism. It reminds media companies to carefully consider privacy implications when reporting on sensitive topics.
GDPR Articles Cited
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National Law Articles
A news company named G.O.L. Impresa Sociale S.r.l. published an article in the newspaper Open Online.it reporting on a news story involving the director of a high school (identified by her first name, last name and a photo) and an 18-year-old high school student (referred to by the initials of his first and last name), following the revelation of a love affair between the two, which is currently being investigated by the competent school offices. The article published excerpts of the messages allegedly exchanged between the director and the student related to details of the personal relations between them, placing a particular focus on the contents of these messages. The story gained wide public notoriety in Italy, and prompted the Italian DPA (Garante per la Protezione dei Dati Personali – Garante) to launch a preliminary investigation into the protection of the personal data of the persons mentioned in the news story, weighed against considerations regarding freedom of expression and information in the context of the journalistic activity carried out by the news company. In its analysis of the case, the Garante took into consideration Article 9 GDPR, which establishes that data revealing a person’s sex life are special categories of personal data, and Article 85 GDPR, which establishes that Member States shall by law reconcile the right to the protection of personal data with the right to freedom of expression and information, including processing for journalistic purposes. The Garante also observed Article 137(3) of the [https://www.garanteprivacy.it/pdf?p_p_id=PdfUtil&p_p_lifecycle=2&p_p_state=normal&p_p_mode=view&p_p_resource_id=%2Foffering%2FprintPDF&p_p_cacheability=cacheLevelPage&_PdfUtil_articleId=9067692 Italian Data Protection Code] (hereinafter the Code) which provides that the dissemination or communication of personal data for journalistic purposes can be limited in order to protect the rights mentioned in Article 1 of the Code (human dignity, funda
Outcome
Violation Found
The DPA found a violation but did not impose a fine.
Related Enforcement Actions (0)
No other enforcement actions found for G.O.L. Impresa Sociale S.r.l. in IT
This is the only recorded action for this entity in this jurisdiction.
Details
Decision Date
1 April 2022
Authority
Garante per la protezione dei dati personali
GDPRhub ID
gdprhub-4882About this data
Cite as: Cookie Fines. G.O.L. Impresa Sociale S.r.l. - Italy (2022). Retrieved from cookiefines.eu
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