Questions and Problems Arising in the Application of the KVKK and in the Compliance Process

14 December 2018Murat Volkan DülgerCommentary

Introduction

This work was written in Turkish. The summary on this page is a translation; the citation gives the original title in parentheses.

With the publication of Law No. 6698 on the Protection of Personal Data (KVKK) in the Official Gazette on 24 March 2016 and its entry into force, personal data protection law began to appear at many points of our daily lives. There is the KVKK, which is the primary source of personal data protection law in our country, and alongside it there are regulations, communiqués and the decisions of the Personal Data Protection Board. Even so, many problems are still encountered in practice and answers are being sought to a large number of questions. These are of vital importance, particularly for the private sector, so that commercial life operates lawfully while trade is at the same time not obstructed.

In this article I will try to address “the problems arising in the application of the KVKK and in the compliance process” and to say out loud the questions that are in fact on the mind of almost everyone who works in this area. I should state first of all that the KVKK entered into force in 2016 and has not yet fully settled in practice. There are many points on which the KVKK is criticised and falls short in practice. Although some of these points have been clarified by decisions of the Board, there are still many shortcomings in practice that need to be remedied. Below I will touch on the problems I have identified under main headings and explain the solutions I have been able to propose for some of them. These are not definitive solutions, however; they are proposals intended to start the debate on this subject.