Critical reflections on the business of personal data by technological platforms (search engines and social networks): between disguised contractual activity and civil liability for its unlawful processing

Abstract

The primary or secondary object of many contracts that users enter into, sometimes unknowingly, when using digital information and communication services, is their personal data. It is a fact that many technology companies try to conceal its obvious contractual nature. It is imperative to update legal principles and simplify contracts related to the processing of this data, adapting them to rapid technological evolution, as was successfully done with the right to be forgotten. Private law cannot relinquish its responsibility to protect the privacy and fundamental rights of citizens in the face of the growing data business. It is essential to ensure that users give their consent to the transfer and processing of their data with full knowledge of what they are agreeing to. The fundamental right to the protection of personal data requires effective civil liability mechanisms for damages caused to the holders of that right, in order to compensate them and try to reduce the constant and increasing abuses of the past.