Although adding people to WhatsApp groups without the consent of others is very common among family and friends, European and Spanish legislation take the treatment of private data very seriously.
According to the AEPD, the club in question violated Article 6 of the General Data Protection Regulation, by adding the former associate to the WhatsApp group without prior acceptance, thus violating the right to exercise a free, manifest, informed will and unequivocal.
In addition, the Sansueña club also broke the law by keeping this person’s data longer than necessary, depending on the purpose for which they were collected at the time.
Finally, the audacity of the sports club put the telephone number of the affected party in the hands of third parties, without their consent, which represents a “violation of their confidentiality”.
Although, for the moment, the fine reaches 4,000 eurosIn more serious cases, the violation of these norms can suppose a financial sanction of up to 20 million euros.
It is important to clarify that these types of fines are only applicable when there is an inappropriate use of personal data for commercial or professional purposes. Therefore, in the private sphere, people can be carefree and add their friends and family to WhatsApp groups without receiving fines.