This year’s celebrations for Data Protection Day may have been a bit toned down. But you still may have been so busy celebrating that you may have missed a couple of news from the (data privacy) world.

First, the EDPB’s Guidelines 01/2021 on Examples regarding Data Breach Notification are out and open for comments until March 2^nd.  The document can be used as a very practical guide for whoever is involved in data processing activities. It is aimed at helping data controllers in deciding how to handle data breaches and what factors to consider during risk assessment. The Guidelines reflect the experiences of the European supervisory authorities since the GDPR became applicable and they are full of cases and examples which make them, admittedly, a practice-oriented, case-based guide for controllers and processors. So, are you curious to know what to do in case of a ransomware attack with backup but without exfiltration in a hospital? Or perhaps in case of a credential stuffing attack on a banking website? Or you’re “just” trying to figure out what to do in case of mistakes in post and mail?  Then, check out the guidelines!

Meanwhile, in Italy, the Italian Data Protection Authority gave its favourable opinion to the proposed reform of the Italian Registro Pubblico delle Opposizioni, a service designed for the protection of data-subjects, whose telephone number is publicly available but who wish not to receive unsolicited direct marketing calls from an operator. Nevertheless, the Italian Data Protection Authority specified that such service, essentially based on a list of express dissents, only applies to marketing activities carried out by human operators and cannot be extended to automated calls. The Italian Data Protection Authority, by doing so, confirms that marketing activities carried out through automated systems must be subject to stricter measures and always require express consent, given their highly invasive nature. So: Humans 1, Automated Calling Machines: 0.