Rights requests and unauthorised disclosure

1. Regulatory Concept & Core Standards

In this video we will consolidate a skill: handle rights requests and breaches with confidentiality safeguards. Use the case to test what you would do in a similar situation. We will explain the proposed response step by step so that you can understand each choice and recognise when more information would be needed. Reports can contain data about the reporter, persons concerned and bystanders. The GDPR, Estonian Personal Data Protection Act and TÕRTKS special rules govern processing. This course distinguishes lawful handling from unjustified collection, sharing and retention.

Access rights do not automatically reveal an entire report. Section 15(2) requires restrictions necessary to protect reporter confidentiality. A breach requires GDPR articles 33–34 assessment, including the conditional 72-hour supervisory-notification rule starting with awareness.

Apply the following rule: Section 10(3) prescribes three years and refers to feedback under section 11(4), while final-outcome feedback now appears in section 11(6). Do not conceal the cross-reference issue or automatically replace it with receipt. Document the legally confirmed starting event before automating deletion. Government Regulation 12 of 2 February 2026 covers the report, collected material and media, review of oral-report minutes and destruction under a procedure approved by the organisation’s head.

2. Practical Implementation & Procedure

Record the request or incident, contain harm and involve competent privacy staff. Assess necessary rights restrictions and notification duties. Document grounds and timing. Generic confidentiality statements do not replace specific assessment. Before moving on, turn this procedure into a sequence you could explain to a colleague. Identify the first check, the action that depends on its outcome and the record that allows the decision to be reconstructed. Follow the sequence on screen and identify the point where an error would change the result.

3. Case Study & Compliance Action

A file goes to the wrong recipient. The team limits access, evaluates risk and decides on authority and individual notifications under the legal conditions. Now read the case carefully. Separate established facts from information you would still need to confirm. Do not add motives or events that have not been described. This distinction matters when choosing a response proportionate to the information available.

The exercise is as follows: Does accidental disclosure remove the need for assessment? Choose an answer and write one sentence explaining it. During the pause, compare your choice with the criteria we have just considered. Also think about the material you would retain to explain the decision later.

No. An accident can be a personal-data breach. Assess risks, duties and deadlines and record containment.

One mistake to avoid is: concealing an incident because it was unintentional.

Now apply the national rule to a second decision. The system deletes every case five years after receipt. Is that correct for Estonia?

No. The three-year period in section 10(3) references feedback rather than automatically receipt. The current cross-reference issue needs a documented legal resolution. Apply Regulation 12 and privacy rules to related material and copies. Do not keep everything indefinitely without grounds.