Data protection refers to the protection of personal data against misuse. In the European legal area, the term “data protection” is also used in legislation.
A person's personal data may only be stored and processed if a legal provision allows this or if the person concerned consents. The Federal Data Protection Act, which came into force in 1978, and corresponding laws in the federal states serve to protect data. The proper implementation of the legal data protection measures is entrusted to data protection officers in government and industry.
The main aim of data protection is to protect individuals from having their right to informational self-determination compromised by the way their personal data is handled. Data protection stands for the principle that everyone can decide for themselves who should have access to which of their personal data and when. Data protection aims to prevent the so-called transparent person.
The cost argument, which is often used by small and medium-sized companies in particular as an argument against implementing data protection, falls short in view of the social responsibility of entrepreneurs and takes into account neither the advantages of "living" data protection in the company nor the synergy effects that result from the overlap with the tasks in the area of information protection and data security.
Data protection must also be ensured when taking data backup measures.
Since spring 2009, the Federal Government, employers' representatives and data protection officers have been discussing a special data protection law to protect employees in light of the widespread investigations and spying on employees in large German companies that have come to light.
See also:
Human resources management; Corporate social responsibility (CSR); Fairness; ICT management; Customer management; Leadership; Employee management; Ethics/corporate ethics; Values orientation; White-collar crime
Reference to QET guidelines:
Q07 Human resources management; E01 Business ethics; E05 Data protection; E20 CSR; T01 Guidelines