Personal data protection in the energy services market : selected issues

Objectives:
The purpose of the study is to determine whether data from metering equipment can qualify as personal data. An intermediate goal was to discuss administrative fines imposed in EU countries in the energy sector.

Material and methods:
The study uses methods applied in legal sciences: 1) the dogmatic method, relating to the determination of the currently applicable legal provisions governing the principles of personal data processing, as well as the amount of administrative fines imposed; it has a dominant character in the study due to the fact that the author focuses on the analysis of current legal regulations, as well as on their practical use and application in EU and other European countries. 2) An analytical method was used in relation to the current state of knowledge in the subject area in the achievements of legal science. 3) Comparative legal method is of supplementary importance and concerns the analysis of legal and organizational solutions in the area of personal data protection and the level of compliance with EU regulations at the national level, with particular emphasis on the energy services sector. 4) Historical method is related to the evolution of the development of legal regulations on the protection of personal data in the perspective of development and popularization of the use of modern technological solutions by entities in the energy sector.

Results:
The activities of the entities on which the administrative fine was imposed were related to the processing of personal data. The analysis covered 1,480 fines imposed in the indicated period, of which only 28 fines were imposed on entities from the energy services sector, which is only 1.89%.

Conclusions:
Entities in the energy sector process personal data on a large scale. The precision with which they should process personal data is special.

The article deals with the protection of consumers’ personal data in the energy services market, considering the penalties imposed by national supervisory authorities between April 2018 and December 2022. The publication discusses Principles of personal data processing in the energy sector and Innovative technological solutions and technical safety in the policy of sustainable development. The author focuses on administrative fines imposed in the energy sector in Europe. The article recognizes the role that administrative fines can play in defining a new category of state revenue