1. This Regulation applies to the processing of personal data wholly or partly by automated means and to the processing other than by automated means of personal data which form part of a filing system or are intended to form part of a filing system.
Article 2 GDPR - Material scope
2. This Regulation does not apply to the processing of personal data:
(a) in the course of an activity which falls outside the scope of Union law;
(b) by the Member States when carrying out activities which fall within the scope of Chapter 2 of Title V of the TEU;
(c) by a natural person in the course of a purely personal or household activity;
(d) by competent authorities for the purposes of the prevention, investigation, detection or prosecution of criminal offences or the execution of criminal penalties, including the safeguarding against and the prevention of threats to public security.
3. For the processing of personal data by the Union institutions, bodies, offices and agencies, Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 applies. Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 and other Union legal acts applicable to such processing of personal data shall be adapted to the principles and rules of this Regulation in accordance with Article 98.
4. This Regulation shall be without prejudice to the application of Directive 2000/31/EC, in particular of the liability rules of intermediary service providers in Articles 12 to 15 of that Directive.
Relevant Recitals
- Recital 13 Taking Account of Micro, Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises
- Recital 14 Not Applicable to Legal Persons
- Recital 15 Technology Neutrality
- Recital 16 Not Applicable to Activities Regarding National and Common Security
- Recital 17 Adaptation of Regulation (EC) No 45/2001
- Recital 18 Not Applicable to Personal or Household Activities
- Recital 19 Not Applicable to Criminal Prosecution
- Recital 20 Respecting the Independence of the Judiciary
- Recital 21 Liability Rules of Intermediary Service Providers Shall Remain Unaffected
- Recital 27 Not Applicable to Data of Deceased Persons
Frequently Asked Questions
Short answers to common questions about this provision. They are general information and not legal advice.
Under paragraph 1 it applies to the processing of personal data wholly or partly by automated means, and to non-automated processing of personal data which form part of a filing system or are intended to form part of one. The breadth of the definition of processing in Article 4(2) means that almost any operation on personal data, from collection to erasure, is covered.
Yes, provided the paper records form part of a filing system or are intended to do so. Article 4(6) defines a filing system as any structured set of personal data accessible according to specific criteria, whether centralised, decentralised or dispersed, so ordered paper files such as alphabetised personnel folders are covered, while unstructured loose notes are not.
It excludes processing by a natural person in the course of a purely personal or household activity, such as private correspondence or a personal address book. The word purely indicates a narrow reading, and the exemption does not extend to controllers or processors who provide the means for such processing, nor to a natural person whose activity has a professional or commercial dimension.
No. Point (d) of paragraph 2 excludes processing by competent authorities for the prevention, investigation, detection or prosecution of criminal offences or the execution of criminal penalties, including safeguarding against threats to public security. The same authority remains subject to the Regulation, however, when it processes personal data for other purposes, such as managing its own staff.
Paragraph 3 leaves processing by Union institutions, bodies, offices and agencies to Regulation (EC) No 45/2001, which is to be adapted to the principles of the Regulation in accordance with Article 98. Paragraph 4 preserves Directive 2000/31/EC, in particular the liability rules for intermediary service providers in Articles 12 to 15 of that Directive.