The Agency of Access to Public Information Published its Annual Report 2019

In its prologue, the Agency of Access to Public Information (the “Agency”) highlights the fact that it has become an autarchic entity, which guarantees both the stability of its hierarchical officials and its own budget, exclusively prepared and executed by itself. This autarchy has allowed the Agency to reach the standards of transparency and independence required by several international bodies.

Further, the Annual Report states that the Agency has worked on reviewing and updating of different regulations, including, among others the following:

• Resolution No. 4/2019, on guidelines, recommendations and best practices for the application of the Data Protection Law
• Resolution No. 34/2019, on the incorporation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland as a region providing an adequate level of protection for the purposes of international data transfer.
• Resolution No. 86/2019 Guide for the Processing of Personal Data for Electoral Purposes.
• Entry into force of Convention 108 and signing of Convention 108+ for Argentina.
• Resolution No. 159/2019, setting the basic guidelines and content of binding corporate rules.
• Draft Bill for the Protection of Personal Data. The Agency indicated that it continued to promote the reform process and that the Agency has made itself available to the commissions of the Argentine Congress that must deal with the bill.

Likewise, the Annual Report highlights that the Registry of Offenders has been publicized on the Agency's website to keep the list of those responsible for committing infractions up to date.

In addition, the Report indicates that the following projects and/or proceedings are in the process of being modified:

• New inspection procedure.
• Binational Guide on Data Protection Impact Assessment (mechanism devised together with the data protection authority of Uruguay).
• Review of the Decision on the Adequacy of Argentina by the European Union regarding the international transfer of data.

With reference to the processing of administrative files, during 2019 the Agency:

• Replied to 95 judicial communications.
• Incorporated 11,017 documents into the Registry of Questioned Identity Documents.
• Received 41,952 complaints for the “Do not Call” National Registry (which resulted in the initiation of 21 new files).
• Allowed the registration of 3,672 databases, as well as 3,275 private and 162 public databases.
• Opened a total of 214 administrative files for complaints based on the Data Protection Law, with 11 fines / penalties totaling ARS 1,050,600.
• Carried out seven spontaneous investigations.
• Conducted several investigations in first division football clubs to determine the type of personal data they handle, its impact on privacy, and their compliance with regard to the registration of their databases.  

Moreover, during this period the Agency imposed monetary sanctions for ARS 63,356,460, being the most reported and sanctioned industries the telecommunications and audiovisual ones.

Finally, and in conjunction with the recently published Management Report 2017/2019 in which the Agency evaluates its first two years of activity (the document in Spanish is available following this link). There, it indicates that it is currently working on two ‘levels’ simultaneously: the local level –ensuring compliance with the Access to Public Information Law and the Data Protection Law No. 25,326– and the international level –as a member of the Convention 108–.

The Management Report can be consulted at this link.