The National Congress enacted this Thursday, February 10, Constitutional Amendment 115, which guarantees the protection of personal data, including those transmitted in digital media, as a fundamental right, in addition to establishing the exclusive competence of the Union to legislate on the matter.

This is a historic day, as EC 115 raises the protection of personal data, including in digital media, to another level. It is now included in the list of fundamental rights of citizens, as well as the right to life, liberty, security, property and the inviolability of privacy, private life, honor and image of individuals.

Furthermore, by establishing the exclusive competence of the Union to legislate on data protection and processing, the Amendment puts an end to several municipal and state legislative acts that aim to create specific data protection authorities, regulate and apply sanctions on the subject and, in some cases, establish legal bases and guidelines that are distinct from federal law.

The enactment of EC 115 also creates a strong basis for the General Law on the Protection of Personal Data (“LGPD”) to fulfill its objective of protecting the fundamental rights of freedom and privacy and the free development of the natural person’s personality.

As it is a constitutional norm, its applicability is immediate.

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