Spanish Ministry for Ecological Transition (MITECO) – Court Ruling (Spain, 2025)
General GDPR enforcement action
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The Spanish Ministry for Ecological Transition faced a court ruling regarding access to the source code of a tool called BOSCO, which helps determine if vulnerable consumers qualify for electricity assistance. This ruling is significant because it emphasizes the balance between transparency and protecting intellectual property. Companies should be aware that they may need to justify why certain information cannot be shared.
What happened
Civio requested access to the source code of the BOSCO tool to audit its decision-making process.
Who was affected
Vulnerable consumers who might be affected by the decisions made by the BOSCO tool.
What the authority found
The courts ruled that access to the source code was denied due to intellectual property rights and security concerns.
Why this matters
This ruling sets a precedent for how transparency requests are handled, especially when they involve proprietary technology. Organizations should be prepared to explain their decisions about data access.
GDPR Articles Cited
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National Law Articles
BOSCO is a tool used by the Spanish Ministry for Ecological Transition (MITECO). Electricity companies use BOSCO to automatically check whether vulnerable consumers qualify for assistance for their electricity bill. In 2018 Fundación Ciudadana Civio (referred to as “Civio”, a nonprofit organisation) requested from MITECO access to technical documentation and source code in order to audit how automated decision-making took place. According to Civio, a significant number of people were denied access to this social bonus even if they seemed to meet the requirements. People also did not receive an explanation on why their request was denied. Civio filed a complaint with the Transparency and Good Government Council (CTBG), after not receiving a response from MITECO. The CTBG granted Civio access to technical specifications and test results, but denied access to the source code on intellectual property grounds. Under national law ([https://www.boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-2013-12887#top the law on transparency, access to public information and good governance, or LTAIBG]), the right to access to public institutions may be limited if it harms professional secrecy and intellectual property. Civio appealed the decision to the Court of First Instance and High Court. Both courts denied access to the source code, on the grounds that it violated intellectual property rights. The right to access could also be limited in this case due to the security implications of disclosing the source code; according to the Court, the vulnerabilities found in the code could be used to access databases connected to BOSCO (such as those managed by the Tax Authority and Social Security). Civio appealed the decision to the Supreme Court. Civio argued that the courts had misinterpreted [https://www.boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-2013-12887#a14 Article 14(1) LTAIBG] to completely limit the right to access; the courts did not consider that the limit must be necessary and proportionate, especially
Outcome
Court Ruling
A ruling by a national court on a data-protection matter.
Related Cases (0)
No other cases found for Spanish Ministry for Ecological Transition (MITECO) in ES
This is the only recorded case for this entity in this jurisdiction.
Details
About this data
Cite as: Cookie Fines. Spanish Ministry for Ecological Transition (MITECO) - Spain (2025). Retrieved from cookiefines.eu
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