Data Protection in the Internet: Greece
Vassilios Kourtis
1 The General Data Protection Framework
1.1 The Applicable Rules
The Greek Constitution guarantees the right to information (Art. 5A) and the right to
protection of personal data (Art. 9A).
1 Specifically, article 5A §1 of the Constitution
safeguards the right of each person to be informed, as this right is specified by law.
Restrictions to this right may be imposed by law only insofar as they are necessary
and justified for reasons of national security, of combating crime or of protecting
rights and interests of third parties. Article 5A §2 of the Constitution safeguards a
specific facet of the right to information: the right of each person to participate in the
information society. The Greek State must facilitate access to information transmitted electronically, as well as to facilitate production, exchange and diffusion of
information, in observance of the guarantees of article 9 of the Constitution, which
safeguards the right to private and family life, article 19 of the Constitution, which
protects the right to confidentiality of communications, and article 9A of the
Constitution on personal data protection.
Article 9A is the constitutional basis for personal data protection, as it guarantees
the right to informational self-determination. It reads: “All persons have the right to
be protected from the collection, processing and use, especially by electronic means,
of their personal data, as specified by law”. Article 9A provides protection against
any type of processing, automated or not, carried out by public or private bodies. The
V. Kourtis (*)
Faculty of Law, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
e-mail: vk@law.auth.gr
1 See Spyropoulos and Fortsakis (2009), sparsim; Chryssogonos (2002), pp. 199 ff.; Donos (2000),
pp. 109 ff.; Iliadou (2016), pp. 23 ff.; Vidalis (2006), pp. 19 ff.; Sotiropoulos (2006), pp. 69 ff.
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
D. Moura Vicente, S. de Vasconcelos Casimiro (eds.), Data Protection in the
Internet, Ius Comparatum – Global Studies in Comparative Law 38,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-28049-9_8
211
Vassilios Kourtis
1 The General Data Protection Framework
1.1 The Applicable Rules
The Greek Constitution guarantees the right to information (Art. 5A) and the right to
protection of personal data (Art. 9A).
1 Specifically, article 5A §1 of the Constitution
safeguards the right of each person to be informed, as this right is specified by law.
Restrictions to this right may be imposed by law only insofar as they are necessary
and justified for reasons of national security, of combating crime or of protecting
rights and interests of third parties. Article 5A §2 of the Constitution safeguards a
specific facet of the right to information: the right of each person to participate in the
information society. The Greek State must facilitate access to information transmitted electronically, as well as to facilitate production, exchange and diffusion of
information, in observance of the guarantees of article 9 of the Constitution, which
safeguards the right to private and family life, article 19 of the Constitution, which
protects the right to confidentiality of communications, and article 9A of the
Constitution on personal data protection.
Article 9A is the constitutional basis for personal data protection, as it guarantees
the right to informational self-determination. It reads: “All persons have the right to
be protected from the collection, processing and use, especially by electronic means,
of their personal data, as specified by law”. Article 9A provides protection against
any type of processing, automated or not, carried out by public or private bodies. The
V. Kourtis (*)
Faculty of Law, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
e-mail: vk@law.auth.gr
1 See Spyropoulos and Fortsakis (2009), sparsim; Chryssogonos (2002), pp. 199 ff.; Donos (2000),
pp. 109 ff.; Iliadou (2016), pp. 23 ff.; Vidalis (2006), pp. 19 ff.; Sotiropoulos (2006), pp. 69 ff.
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
D. Moura Vicente, S. de Vasconcelos Casimiro (eds.), Data Protection in the
Internet, Ius Comparatum – Global Studies in Comparative Law 38,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-28049-9_8
211