National Police – Violation Found (Slovenia, 2023)

On 3 April 2023, the applicant requested the local Police Station (the controller) to delete from its website the information concerning her disappearance, as well as from the websites of the media outlets that had picked up the news from the police website. In a reply dated 6 April 2023, the controller explained that her requests could not be granted because they were not responsible for the content and its deletion from the other online portals. Thus, the applicant filed a complaint to the Slovenian DPA against the controller, and the DPA then began its proceedings by conducting two calls with the controller. The controller confirmed to the DPA that it had removed the applicant's data from its website since its publication was no longer necessary for the purpose of the search for this person. It further explained to have ensured compliance, after the proceedings started, by also communicating to all media outlets that still had news of the applicant's disappearance published online that the applicant had requested the deletion of her personal data. In the notification, the controller had explained to the media outlets that this was a submission of an erasure request, which they had to comply with in accordance with the GDPR. The Slovenian DPA held that the controller violated Article 17(2) GDPR, which regulates the right to be forgotten. In accordance with this provision, upon receiving a deletion request, the controller should have taken reasonable steps to inform the controllers to whom the applicant's personal data had been forwarded that the applicant requested the deletion of her personal data. In the present case, it was clear that the applicant wished to have her information removed as soon as possible from the internet. Thus, the controller should have complied with Article 17(2) GDPR by sending a notification to every media outlet that published the missing person's details stating that the applicant had requested erasure of the information. Hence, the