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Data Commission entitled to pursue own Google investigation ahead of academic's complaint, appeal finds

Summary

The Court of Appeal dismissed Dr Johnny Ryan's claim that the Data Protection Commission (DPC) had failed to investigate his 2018 complaint about Google's Real Time Bidding system. Ryan, a senior fellow of the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, alleged that Google's RTB system unlawfully processed large volumes of personal data for targeted advertising, breaching GDPR and the 2018 Data Protection Act. The High Court had ruled that the DPC was entitled to conduct its own inquiry into the alleged breach before addressing Ryan's complaint, a decision the DPC has pursued. Ryan argued the High Court erred in applying GDPR provisions and EU case law, but the Court of Appeal upheld the lower court's findings, finding no error in the High Court's decision to defer the complaint. The DPC maintains it opened an inquiry of its own volition in 2019 and will complete it before resuming Ryan's case. Google Ireland was a notice party to the proceedings.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Data Commission entitled to pursue own Google investigation ahead of academic's complaint, appeal finds. Procedural stage: appeal

When:

• September 2018 Other
• 2024-06-24 Publication

Case subjects

Places mentioned

Topics

Stage Appeal

Read the original CNI report