Ciechi Ardizzone Gioeni di Catania – €5,000 Fine (Italy, 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.
An Italian residential home for blind people was fined EUR 5,000 for using video cameras that recorded areas leading to communal showers without proper notice or justification. The cameras were meant to prevent theft and unauthorized access, but the setup violated privacy rules. This matters because it highlights the need for clear communication and careful planning when using surveillance in sensitive areas.
What happened
The residential home used video surveillance that recorded areas leading to communal showers without proper notice or justification.
Who was affected
Visitors and residents of the residential home who were recorded by the surveillance cameras.
What the authority found
The Italian DPA found that the home violated principles of lawfulness, transparency, and data minimization by using surveillance without proper notice or justification.
Why this matters
This case shows the importance of balancing security needs with privacy rights, especially in sensitive areas like residential homes. Businesses should ensure they have clear policies and communicate them to those affected by surveillance.
GDPR Articles Cited
The Italian DPA (Garante) has imposed a fine of EUR 5,000 on the Ciechi Ardizzone Gioeni di Catania residential home for blind people. A visitor to the residence filed a complaint with the DPA. He based this on an installed video surveillance system in the accommodation. The video surveillance system recorded, among other things, the corridor connecting the accommodation with the communal showers. Moreover, the footage was not only recorded but also displayed in real time on the monitors of the concierge staff, creating the risk that the images could also be inadvertently seen by visitors or suppliers. During the course of the investigation, the institution's administration justified the installation of the video surveillance system by citing the need to prevent theft and ensure the health of residents by preventing unauthorized access during the pandemic period. The DPA found that the institute thereby violated the principles of lawfulness, transparency and data minimization. The fact that, as claimed by the institute, the passage of the guests to the shower rooms was filmed only occasionally and for a short duration, and that the quality of the recordings was not 'perfectly clear,' does not resolve the unlawfulness of the recordings. Also, the DPA noted that some procedural precautions - such as scheduling time windows to turn off the cameras to allow guests to visit the shower rooms without being filmed, or temporarily ensuring the security of the locations through alternative measures, such as the use of security personnel - may allow the institute to pursue the purpose of the video surveillance in an equally effective manner and avoid unjustifiably restricting the freedoms of the data subjects. Furthermore, the DPA found that the institute had not properly fulfilled its duty to inform. The institute had only provided the data subjects with detailed information about the video surveillance system on the bulletin board after the investigation had begun. However,
Related Enforcement Actions (0)
No other enforcement actions found for Ciechi Ardizzone Gioeni di Catania in IT
This is the only recorded action for this entity in this jurisdiction.
Details
Fine Date
16 September 2021
Authority
Garante per la protezione dei dati personali
Fine Amount
€5,000
Enforcement Tracker ID
ETid-874
About this data
Cite as: Cookie Fines. Ciechi Ardizzone Gioeni di Catania - Italy (2021). Retrieved from cookiefines.eu
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