Purposes

Enter the purposes of the data processing here.

A purpose is the objective pursued by the creation of your file. It indicates what the processing of personal data will be used for, its raison d'être. This objective must be clear and understandable.

The definition of the purpose is fundamental because it is a prerequisite for the other elements framing the processing such as the data retention period, the adequacy, the relevance, the proportionality of the data as well as the accuracy and the updating of the data.

Article 5 1. b) of the GDPR provides that the purpose must be determined, explicit and legitimate.

The purpose must be determined: the purpose must be defined with sufficient precision to adapt the necessary data protection guarantees and in order to define the scope of data processing. The level of detail required depends on the particular context of the data collection and the data involved. Sometimes simple language will be enough. For example, a local family business will not require the same level of detail to describe the purpose of the customer file as for a multinational using complex algorithms allowing personalized offers and targeted advertising. The purpose must be determined before the processing is carried out.

The purpose must be explicit: the purpose must not be ambiguous and must be clearly expressed.

The purpose must be legitimate: legitimacy refers to the legal basis on which the data processing required by article 6 of the GDPR is based.

This notion also requires finality not to contravene the law in general. For example, the purpose will not be legitimate if it leads to discrimination prohibited by the penal code. We can take into account labor law, consumer law or contract law in particular.

In addition, it is necessary to take into account the context of the processing in order to assess the legitimacy and, in particular, the reasonable expectations of the data subject.

A processing activity can have several purposes. For example, the “recruitment” activity could have two distinct purposes: the analysis of applications and the management of interviews, as well as the creation of a CV-library.

For each purpose, you must define the applicable legal basis. There can only be one legal basis per purpose. The choice of this legal basis must be made according to the context of the processing.

Lawful basis for processing

There are 6 possible lawful basis for data processing.

Consent

Consent must meet four criteria for processing to be lawful: it must be

• free,

• specific,

• informed and

• unambiguous.

It must be as easy to give as to withdraw. You must document proof that consent is validly obtained. You can do this by attaching a description of the consent process to the treatment (step 11).

Contract or pre-contractual measures

The legal basis of the contract must meet three criteria to be valid: there must be

• a contractual or pre-contractual relationship between the controller and the data subject;

• the contract must be valid under the applicable law and

• the processing must be objectively necessary for the performance of the contract.

The right to object cannot be exercised on this processing based on this legal basis and the right to data portability can be exercised on this processing. You can add the contract on which you are basing the processing in the attachments in step 11.

Legal obligation

The legal obligation must be

• imperative,

• sufficiently clear and precise to provide a valid basis for processing.

The texts creating this obligation must at least define the purpose of the processing. The obligation must be imposed on the controller and not on the data subjects. You must detail the text that imposes the processing (for example, an article of law).

Safeguarding vital interests

The safeguarding of vital interests is limited to situations that threaten the life of the person concerned or of another natural person. The most obvious application is the situation where a person is the victim of an accident and, being seriously injured, is admitted to a hospital while unconscious and isn't in a condition to give consent for the processing of his or her data for treatment. This basis must be interpreted strictly and used only if consent cannot be sought.

Public interest mission

The performance of a task in the public interest or in the exercise of public authority. The use of this legal basis is justified in particular for processing operations implemented by public authorities for the purpose of carrying out their missions.

Two conditions are necessary:

• the processing must allow the relevant and appropriate exercise of the task entrusted to the public authority and must not have another purpose that is unrelated or too far removed from the specificities of the public interest task in question.

• The public interest must be defined in the law and cannot be presumed.

You will need to detail the public interest purpose that requires the processing.

Legitimate interests

The legitimate interests of the controller or a third party.

This legal basis cannot be invoked by public bodies in the context of their mission and must meet 3 conditions:

• the interest pursued must be legitimate, that is, lawful (legal), clear and precise and real (not fictitious);

• the processing must be necessary to achieve the objective and therefore it must be the least intrusive means;

• and finally, the processing must not exceed the rights and freedoms of the data subjects, taking into account their reasonable expectations.

A balancing test must be carried out, for example with a proportionality test.

You can keep the results of this test as a document in step 11. You will also need to detail the legitimate interests invoked (e.g. security of the computer network or the fight against fraud).