Data Protection and Consumer Protection: The Empowerment of the Citizen Consumer

Abstract

This chapter explores the alignment of the EU data protection and consumer protection policy agendas through a discussion of the reference to the Unfair Contract Terms Directive in Recital 42 of the General Data Protection Regulation. This non-binding provision refers to the need to assess the (un)fairness of pre-formulated declarations of data subject consent to personal data processing. Through this lens the introduction of the Directive on Contracts for the Supply of Digital Content and its relationship to the data protection and privacy framework is also explored. The protections provided by both the data protection and privacy and consumer protection frameworks aim to bolster the decision-making capacity of individuals. However, as this chapter outlines, there are potential conflicts when the respective frameworks are assessed together.

Keywords: European Union, data protection, consumer protection, unfair contracts, digital content