- Austrian data protection authority imposes a fine of EUR 18 million on Österreichische Post AG for unlawful data processing.
- Profiles of around 2.2 million people are affected, including party affinity data, classified as special categories in accordance with Art. 9 GDPR.
- Feldkirch Regional Court awarded non-material damages of EUR 800 and confirmed processing of special categories without legal basis.
- Court emphasized that there is a materiality threshold for immaterial damage; not every consequence of unpleasantness is eligible for compensation.
The Austrian data protection authority imposed a fine of EUR 18 million on Österreichische Post AG (ÖPAG) (Media release). The bus is not legally binding and ÖPAG has announced that it will not accept the buses.
The background to this is the collection and dissemination of data profiles of apparently 2.2 million individuals. These profiles have information also on the Party affinity i.e., the probability of voting for a certain party as assessed by ÖPAG. According to the data protection authority, these should be Special categories of personal data within the meaning of Art. 9 GDPR, which would have required explicit consent. The authority also identified other violations.
In the same case, the Feldkirch Regional Court awarded immaterial Damages in the amount of EUR 800 awarded (Judgment from August 7, 2019). The Regional Court also came to the conclusion that ÖPAG had processed special categories of personal data – without a legal basis.
In doing so, the district court did, after all, hold:
The GDPR does not specify a materiality threshold for the compensation of non-material damage. Nevertheless, not all feelings of displeasure associated with an infringement of rights are compensable, but rather the impairment of interests must have a Weight to be givenbecause the austria Damages law such a Materiality threshold immanent is […].