Guidance On Direct Marketing Issued By The German Data Protection Supervisory Authorities

In November, the German Data Protection Conference (committee of the independent German federal and state data protection supervisory authorities) ("DSK") published a guidance on the processing of personal data for direct marketing purposes under the GDPR. This guidance finally brings some light into the darkness of marketing under the GDPR.

The key takeaways are:

1. General Principles Under GDPR for Direct Marketing

• DSK has a rather broad understanding of the term "marketing" that also includes customer satisfaction surveys as well as emails for Christmas or birthday parties.
• Direct marketing activities require a balancing of interests whereby comprehensive and transparent information on the processing of personal data as required under Arts. 13 and 14 will help justify the marketing. The balancing of interests should particularly take into account the reasonable expectations of the data subject.