The consent shall be acquired for each step of data among more data controllers.

The consent, initially issued by a client to a society also for thirds promotional activities, shall not extend its effectiveness also to subsequent supplies to other data controllers. Those supplies will not be supported by the specific and informed consent of the data subject.

Based on this principle, the Italian Data Protection Authority has sanctioned fine a with of 3.000.000 EUR Iren Mercato S.p.A., which is a society that is working in the energetic sector, for not having verified that all the step of recipient’s of promotions data where covered by the consent. After different complaints and reports the Authority has investigated on the society and discovered that it has processed personal data for telemarketing activities, that has not directly recollected, but that it has acquired from other sources. Iren has obtained personal lists by a S.r.L, that in its turn, has acquired, as a independent data controller, by other two companies. Those last companies have obtained the consent of potential clients for the telemarketing carried out by theirs and third parties, but this consent does not cover the passage of those data from the S.r.l. to Iren.

The amount of the sanction applied by the Authority has been motivated also by the fact that personal list, without all the necessary consent and of which the Authority has prohibited the usage for promotional purposes, refer to million different people. The Authority has also made a warn to the society for having provided a representation and an incomplete documentary evidence during the investigation.

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