Europe Issues Guidelines On Privacy Issues In The Coronavirus Pandemic

The European Data Protection Board (the EDPB), which brings together the data protection authorities of the 28 member states of the European Union, issued guidelines on the use of location data and the use of health information in the combat against the coronavirus pandemic.

The guidelines on processing location data reiterate the importance of the GDPR principles of proportionality, purpose limitation, transparency, and legal basis for processing. The EDPB emphasizes that for location data, preference should always be given to process anonymized data rather than personal data that relates to an individual person.

As per the EDPB, a systematic and large scale monitoring of location or contacts between individuals is a grave intrusion into their privacy. It can only be legitimized by relying on users' voluntary use. This, in turn, means that individuals who decide not to use, or who cannot use these applications should not suffer from any disadvantage.