The Internet of Things, big data analytics and the increasing use of cloud services, as well as growing globalisation, inevitably poses challenges to processing personal data in a way that is secure and compliant with privacy and data protection laws. Contrary to popular belief, we believe that current data protection regimes offer sufficient opportunities to legitimately process personal data, enabling our clients to do business as usual.
Our Privacy & Data Protection Team has gained specific expertise within a number of sectors, including e-commerce, automotive, FinTech, real estate, financial services and insurance, healthcare and retail.
Our expertise on privacy
We have extensive experience in the field of privacy and data protection, including the General Data Protection Regulation. We regularly litigate on privacy and data protection matters before supervisory authorities and courts, including the Dutch Supreme Court.
Our privacy and data protection specialists advise clients (governments, companies and other organisations) on a variety of topics, such as:
- online advertising and direct marketing;
- connected cars;
- data breach reporting;
- intermediary injunctions;
- privacy complaints (access, rectification, objection, data portability);
- big data analysis;
- clinical trials and healthcare research;
- whistleblowing schemes;
- outsourcing;
- HR and recruitment;
- employee monitoring;
- international/third party data transfers; and
- corporate investigations.
We help our clients to understand the applicable legal framework, and take the required measures in order to comply. This includes:
- negotiating contracts (data processing agreements, service agreements, data transfer agreements, joint controller arrangements);
- advising on day-to-day topics (data transfers, advertising campaigns, prize draws, direct marketing, data sharing, data retention, customer complaints);
- setting up a register of processing activities;
- drafting data protection policies and statements, including data breach protocols and retention policies;
- implementing a cookie policy;
- advising on the implementation of employee monitoring tools;
- advising on connected services, and the related graphic interfaces; and
- carrying out data protection impact assessments and privacy audits.
Our Privacy & Data Protection Team also has experience in dealing with the Dutch Data Protection Authority (Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens), including responding to inquiries and investigations, and oral hearings. If a client is subject to an investigation, we have the required experience to provide the necessary assistance.
We also work with our experts on areas such as IT, automotive, insurance, litigation, employment law and M&A. This multi-disciplinary approach enables Houthoff to deliver well-thought-out solutions, and our specialists to help clients succeed.
