For who? Legal experts, politicians, activists

Technology develops so fast, that GDPR may already be outdated. Willem Debeuckelaere and Elizabeth Renieris explain what kind of regulation we need for the era of decentralised blockchain technologies and personal data ecosystems.

We know about the content of EU General Data Protection Regulation, and other personal data related new regulations and policies. How the legal text turns into societal impact and what is the future with fast technological development? President of the Belgian Commission for the Protection of Privacy Willem Debeuckelaere shares his insights on the citizen empowerment and law enforcement. Elizabeth Renieris, Global Policy Counsel from Evernym will reflect the future connections of regulation in the era of decentralised blockchain technologies.

How is the GDPR enforced?
Willem Debeuckelaere, Vice-President of the “Art. 29 Working Party”

Empowering the citizen or explicit state law enforcement? The impact of the new regulation comes through enforcing the power and contribution of the ‘commons’ and not from the bureaucratic state institutions.

Is the new regulation old already?
Elizabeth Renieris, Evernym

The first draft of the GDPR dates back to 2012 and was the first comprehensive look at data protection and privacy laws in the EU since the Data Protection Directive before it in 1995. Advances in computing and cryptography, along with shifts in our attitudes towards personal data and privacy, mean that we are in a very different world from the one contemplated during the preparation of the GDPR. Because it emerged in a world of traditional, centralized data models, however, the GDPR did not anticipate – and does not address – innovations like blockchain, self-sovereign identity and other efforts to decentralize the personal data ecosystem. As a result, the Regulation lags far behind advances in technology and cultural attitudes, making its application to this brave new world challenging, to say the least. In this presentation, we will explore the tensions between the GDPR and the emerging data landscape and attempt to reconcile some of these tensions by emphasizing the spirit of the law over the letter of the law.

Session is moderated by Malte Beyer-Katzenberger.