Right to be forgotten and international cooperation: problems and perspectives

Abstract

Given the ubiquitous presence of personal data online, an effective protection of the right to be forgotten depends on the cross-border recognition of blocking or delisting injunctions. Thanks to the wide scope of application of the GDPR, addressing any personal data controller, even if established outside the European Union, worldwide blocking orders have been already issued. However, without an international regulatory framework providing for common grounds under which claiming a right to be forgotten, different national legal traditions work as an obstacle to its global enforcement. Indeed, international cooperation for the protection of such right is conditioned on a substantial harmonization of its grounds for application. Recent decisions of the Italian Supreme Court open interesting perspectives in this regard, providing valuable hints on how balancing the protection of personal data and the right to information as well as drawing the dividing line between the right to be forgotten and the tort of defamation.