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ARTICLE · 28 APRIL 2020

Covid-19 And Data Protection In Germany

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On March 13, 2020, The German "Datenschutzkonferenz", a collective body comprising independent federal and state data protection authorities, published guidelines regarding Covid-19

GermanyCoronavirus (COVID-19)
Vanessa Klesy
Vanessa Klesy
Ana Elisa Hadnes Bruder
Ana Elisa Hadnes Bruder
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What are the guidelines issued?

On March 13, 2020, The German "Datenschutzkonferenz", a collective body comprising independent federal and state data protection authorities, published guidelines regarding Covid-19 and data protection.1 On the same day, the state data protection authority of Baden-Württemberg published Q&As on the subject2. A few days later, the state data protection authority of Rhineland-Palatinate issued a note focusing on employee data protection.3

Snapshot of guidelines issued covering:

Asking employees, customers, vendors, and visitors about their diagnoses or symptoms

Controllers are allowed to collect and process personal data of employees and visitors, including health data, in particular to determine whether they are infected with Covid-19, have been in contact with a person who is proven to be infected, or have traveled to an area classified by the German Robert Koch Institut as a Covid-19 risk area.

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