Finnish commissioner Anu Talus appointed as new Chair of EDPB

Anu Talus, Data Protection Ombudsman of Finland has been appointed as the Chair of the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) for a term of five years. Talus, head of the Finnish DPA office since 2020 said: “The EDPB has a solid foundation to work on. We must ensure that the EDPB remains a strong body.”

“Part of the newly adopted EU digital legislation overlaps with the GDPR. Going forward, it is crucial to ensure that the legal framework related to protection is coherent, that the competences of the EDPB are safeguarded and that fragmentation is avoided. Grey areas are in no-one’s favour, not the individuals whose personal data we protect, nor economic operators who need legal certainty.”

Commenting on the EU proposal to streamline cooperation between national data protection authorities when enforcing the GDPR in cross-border cases, she stressed the importance of adequate resources for the EDPB secretariat and said that Article 65 cases (dispute resolution) are likely to increase simply due to the volume of cases that the EBPD is now able to deal with, rather than any serious lack of harmony.

The One-Stop-Shop is where all DPAs participate in decision making. It is normal to have different views when talking about interpretation of law. We reconcile different views in this Article 65 process, she said.

She said it is important that the EDPB uses all of the tools in its toolbox, including orders to delete data, but that she does not have a preference for using certain tools or methods. Data deletion is of course one of the more severe options. The follow-up to ensure that data deletion actually takes place would fall to the national DPA.

The EDPB also elected Irene Loizidou Nikolaidou (Cyprus DPA) as new Deputy Chair of the EDPB.

See EDPB - Anu Talus elected new Chair of the European Data Protection Board

Read more about this topic in the next issue of PL&B International Report.

In her first international conference engagement since being elected as Chair of the EDPB, Anu Talus will speak at PL&B's 36th International Conference in Cambridge:

• Developing GDPR processes to make them more effective, and
• Planning how AI can help DPAs assess enquiries, complaints and data breaches.