The Court of Justice of the European Union ruled religious communities are considered data controllers when they collect information in the process of door-to-door preaching. The ruling stems from a 2013 case where the Finnish Data Protection Supervisor prohibited the country’s Jehovah’s Witness community from collecting and processing personal data unless it complied with Finnish personal data laws. “The fact that door-to-door preaching is protected by the fundamental right of freedom of conscience and religion enshrined in Article 10(1) of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, does not confer an exclusively personal or household character on that activity because it extends beyond the private sphere of a member of a religious community who is a preacher,” the CJEU announcement states.
Full Story