On 10 January 2017 the EU Commission proposed a new regulation
(the "ePrivacy Regulation") to replace
Directive 2002/58/EC (the "ePrivacy
Directive"). This new regulation aims to update and
extend current ePrivacy rules and to align them with the impending
General Data Protection Regulation ("GDPR"). The key
features of the proposed ePrivacy Regulation are as follows:
Increased fines: Currently under the ePrivacy
Directive, as implemented into Irish law, fines are up to
€250,000 for a body corporate and €50,000 for an
individual. Depending on which provision is breached, fines
currently provided for in the ePrivacy Regulation for less severe
breaches can be up to the higher of €10,000,000 or, where the
party in breach is an undertaking, 2% of the preceding financial
year's turnover, and for more material breaches up to the
higher of €20,000,000 or, where the breach party is an
undertaking, 4% of the preceding financial year's turnover.
This aligns with the fines
