Article 86 of the GDPR: Processing and public access to official documents

Article 86 of the GDPR allows Member States to reconcile public access to official documents with the protection of personal data, within the framework of the right to administrative transparency.

Article 86 of the GDPR explained

This article provides:

That the processing of personal data contained in official documents may be authorized to guarantee public access;
That this opening must be carried out in compliance with the GDPR and national legislation on administrative transparency;
That access can be supervised, limited or anonymized when the information is sensitive or affects privacy.

Why is this article important for your GDPR compliance?

He specifies that opening public data cannot be done to the detriment of people's fundamental rights. Administrations and private companies must respect data protection rules even within a framework of transparency.

How to comply with Article 86 of the GDPR?

Identify official documents made available to the public containing personal data;
Plan for anonymization or blurring of sensitive data before distribution;
Write an access policy to administrative documents consistent with the principles of the GDPR;
Consult national legislation on the reuse of public documents (e.g. CADA law in France).

Examples of application of Article 86 of the GDPR

A town hall publishes its deliberations after hiding the names of individuals;
A ministry makes anonymized inspection reports available;
A citizen consults a public registry, with personal information limited to what is strictly necessary.