Conference on personal data protection

On October 17, the representatives of the National Center for Personal Data Protection (NCPDP) participated in the Conference “GDPR4BUSINESS”, organized by the National Association of ICT Companies within the ABA Rule of Law Initiative Project “Personal Data Protection – Rights and Obligations in the Republic of Moldova” in partnership with the European Business Association (EBA Moldova).

At the opening session, the Deputy Director of the NCPDP, Angela COLOMIICENCO, thanked the National Association of ICT Companies and its partners for their contribution to the initiation and organisation of the conference, welcoming the participation of business, civil society and representatives of public institutions in the event, which she described as testimony to the strengthening of cooperative relations in the field of personal data protection.

Ms Angela COLOMIICENCO said: “We are all witnessing a rapid transformation of the digital world, a world in which personal data is ubiquitous. The ever-increasing demand for personal data is accompanied by an increase in their value, on a social, political and economic level. In this context, data protection becomes essential for the rights and freedoms of individuals but also for increasing citizens’ trust that data controllers will respect the conditions of processing and will ensure data security, and an important role in this respect is played by data protection legislation, as well as by the NCPDP, which contributes strongly to the alignment of national legislation with the General Data Protection Regulation and the EU acquis. This legislative harmonisation is necessary in order to maintain the upward trend of personal data protection and not to allow a regression of the field, as well as to continue to ensure a genuine respect for the rights of personal data subjects and a legally secure territory for personal data controllers. NCPDP believes that the Republic of Moldova must have balanced and clear rules, without deviations from the GDPR, we need a comprehensive legislative framework for the protection of personal data, because the latest changes in the social sphere have shown that the complexity of personal data processing operations depends on various new circumstances related to the development of information technologies that the state often fails to regulate“.

Mr. Alexei STRAHOV, Head of the Prevention, Surveillance and Evidence Department, participated in the conference as an expert on behalf of the NCPDP, who addressed the topic “Data Protection Officer” (DPO), highlighting the newest and important aspects required by the provisions of Law 133/2011 on the protection of personal data, appointment of the DPO, DPO function, and DPO tasks.

At the same time, the conference presented practices with applicable content for business and representatives of public authorities, such as:

• Key aspects of the draft law on Personal Data Protection;
• international and regional experience in the application of GDPR;
• solutions and responses to situations, cases and challenges faced by business and public authorities in implementing the harmonised legal framework.

   During the event, as speakers, participated state officials, national and international experts in the field of data protection.