Delfi Meedia AS – Complaint Upheld (Estonia, 2025)
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.
Delfi Meedia AS was ordered to remove a person's name and photo from news articles after they refused to erase the data. This decision shows that individuals have the right to control their personal information, especially when it affects their well-being.
What happened
Delfi Meedia AS did not comply with a request to erase a person's name and photo from its articles.
Who was affected
An individual whose name and photo were published in news articles by Delfi Meedia AS.
What the authority found
The Estonian Data Protection Authority ruled that Delfi Meedia AS must remove the individual's name and photo due to the excessive harm caused by the articles.
Why this matters
This ruling emphasizes that media companies must respect individuals' rights to erase their personal data when it causes harm. It serves as a reminder for all businesses to take data erasure requests seriously.
GDPR Articles Cited
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An individual (the data subject) filed a complaint with the Estonian DPA (AKI) after failing to receive a response from a media publisher (the controller) to his request for data erasure under Article 17 GDPR. The data subject requested the controller to remove his name and photo from news articles arguing that the processing of his personal data affected his and his family’s livelihood and well-being. The DPA made the same request to the controller. The controller proposed an alternative solution, namely de-indexing the articles. However, the data subject rejected the controller’s solution. Therefore, the DPA re-submitted the request for data erasure. The controller once again refused to comply with the erasure request and de-indexed the articles. The DPA found that the news articles in question caused excessive harm to the data subject. Furthermore, the DPA noted that there was diminished public interest in the information contained in the news articles. Therefore, the DPA ordered the controller to remove the image of the data subject and to replace his name with initials in specific articles in line with Article 17 GDPR. Failing to do so, the DPA may impose a penalty payment of €200 repeatedly and for each violation until the controller complies with the order.
Outcome
Complaint Upheld
A data subject complaint that was upheld by the DPA.
Related Enforcement Actions (0)
No other enforcement actions found for Delfi Meedia AS in EE
This is the only recorded action for this entity in this jurisdiction.
Details
About this data
Cite as: Cookie Fines. Delfi Meedia AS - Estonia (2025). Retrieved from cookiefines.eu
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