Looking at some recents episodes of minors expositions on media, also on the occasion of summer holidays, the Italian Data Protection Authority (DPA) remembers to all the media that the personal data protection legislation in journalism places specific guarantees in order to protect minors.

In particular, in order to protect their personality, is required the adoption of particular precautions in order to avoid the diffusion of personal information concerning them, including their image, with negative consequences that can reverberate on their peaceful development on their life quality.

The minor’s right of confidentiality – remember the Garante – must be always considered as primary compared to the right to criticize or the right to inform. Also when, for reasons of public interest and without prejudice to law limits, the journalist decide to share news or images related to minors, he will take charge of the responsibility to assess if the publication is really into the objective interest of the minor, according to the principles established into the “Charter of Treviso” (article 7 – Deontological rules relating to the processing of personal data in the exercise of journalistic activity published in the Official Journal No 3 of 4 January 2019)

SOURCE: AUTORITA’ PER LA PROTEZIONE DEI DATI DELL’ITALIA – GPDP