The GDPR requires that personal data is processed in a manner that ensures appropriate security of the personal data, including protection against unauthorised or unlawful processing and against accidental loss, destruction or damage, using appropriate technical or organisational measures1. This principle is known as integrity and confidentiality, or sometimes as security2. Encryption is one of the possible technical measures that can be used to protect personal data at rest, as it makes the data unintelligible to anyone who does not have the key to decrypt it3. By recommending that the company encrypts all personal data at rest, Tanya is following the principle of integrity and confidentiality, as she is ensuring that the personal data is secure and protected from unauthorised access or accidental damage. Reference: 1: Article 5(1)(f) of the GDPR 2: A guide to the data protection principles | ICO 3: Encryption | ICO

The e-Privacy Directive 2002/58/EC, also known as the Directive on privacy and electronic communications, is a specific directive that complements and particularises the GDPR for the electronic communications sector. It was amended in 2009 by the Directive 2009/136/EC, which introduced several changes to enhance the protection of personal data and privacy in the electronic communications sector. One of these changes was the introduction of a mandatory notification for personal data breaches applicable to providers of publicly available electronic communications services, such as telecom providers and internet service providers.
According to Article 4 of the amended e-Privacy Directive, these providers must notify the competent national authority of any breach of security leading to the accidental or unlawful destruction, loss, alteration, unauthorised disclosure of, or access to, personal data transmitted, stored or otherwise processed in connection with the provision of a publicly available electronic communications service in the Community.
The notification must be made without undue delay and, where feasible, not later than 24 hours after the provider has become aware of the breach. The notification must include information such as the nature and content of the personal data concerned, the circumstances and consequences of the breach, and the measures taken or proposed by the provider to address the breach. The provider must also notify the affected data subjects of the breach, unless the provider has demonstrated to the satisfaction of the competent authority that it has implemented appropriate technological protection measures that render the data unintelligible to any person who is not authorised to access it. The notification to the data subjects must describe the nature of the breach and the contact points where more information can be obtained, and must recommend measures to mitigate the possible adverse effects of the breach. The purpose of this mandatory notification is to ensure that the authorities and the data subjects are informed of the risks and the remedies related to the breach, and to encourage the providers to improve their security measures and prevent further breaches. References: e- Privacy Directive, Changes to e-Privacy Directive Approved by European Parliament, Article 2 Amendments to Directive 2002/58/EC (Directive on privacy and electronic communications), Personal data breaches

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) does not prohibit surveillance of employees in the workplace. Still, it requires employers to follow special rules to ensure that the rights and freedoms of employees are protected when processing their personal data. The GDPR applies to any processing of personal data in the context of the activities of an establishment of a controller or a processor in the EU, regardless of whether the processing takes place in the EU or not. The GDPR also applies to the processing of personal data of data subjects who are in the EU by a controller or processor not established in the EU, where the processing activities are related to the offering of goods or services to data subjects in the EU or the monitoring of their behaviour as far as their behaviour takes place within the EU.
The GDPR requires that any processing of personal data must be lawful, fair and transparent, and based on one of the six legal grounds specified in the regulation. The most relevant legal grounds for employee surveillance are the legitimate interests of the employer, the performance of a contract with the employee, or the compliance with a legal obligation. The GDPR also requires that any processing of personal data must be limited to what is necessary for the purposes for which they are processed, and that the data subjects must be informed of the purposes and the legal basis of the processing, as well as their rights and the safeguards in place to protect their data.
The GDPR also imposes specific obligations and restrictions on the processing of special categories of personal data, such as biometric data, which reveal racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, or trade union membership, or which are processed for the purpose of uniquely identifying a natural person. The processing of such data is prohibited, unless one of the ten exceptions listed in the regulation applies. The most relevant exceptions for employee surveillance are the explicit consent of the data subject, the necessity for the purposes of carrying out the obligations and exercising specific rights of the controller or of the data subject in the field of employment and social security and social protection law, or the necessity for reasons of substantial public interest.
The GDPR also sets out the rules and requirements for the transfer of personal data to third countries or international organisations, which do not ensure an adequate level of data protection. The transfer of such data is only allowed if the controller or processor has provided appropriate safeguards, such as binding corporate rules, standard contractual clauses, codes of conduct or certification mechanisms, and if the data subjects have enforceable rights and effective legal remedies.
Based on the scenario, the only monitoring that may be lawfully performed within the scope of Gentle Hedgehog's business is the monitoring of emails, website browsing history and camera for internal video calls that are expressly marked as monitored. This option is the most consistent with the GDPR's principles and requirements, as it:
Is based on the legitimate interests of the employer to ensure the productivity, quality and security of the work performed by the employees, as well as the performance of a contract with the employees and the compliance with a legal obligation to prevent fraud and protect confidential information.
Is limited to what is necessary for the purposes of the monitoring, as it only covers the work-related activities and communications of the employees, and excludes the private or personal ones.
Is transparent to the employees, as it informs them of the monitoring and its precise scope, and gives them the opportunity to object or opt out of the monitoring.
Does not involve the processing of special categories of personal data, such as biometric data or data revealing political opinions or trade union membership, which are not necessary or proportionate for the purposes of the monitoring.
Does not involve the transfer of personal data to a third country, such as China, which does not provide an adequate level of data protection, and which may pose additional risks for the rights and freedoms of the employees.
The other options listed in the question are not lawful monitoring within the scope of Gentle Hedgehog's business, as they:
Are not based on a valid legal ground for the processing of personal data, as they either rely on the consent of the employees, which is not freely given, informed and specific, or on the legitimate interests of the employer, which are not balanced with the rights and freedoms of the employees.
Are not limited to what is necessary for the purposes of the monitoring, as they involve the collection and processing of excessive and irrelevant personal data, such as camera and microphone monitoring, screen captures, keystrokes, and facial recognition data, which go beyond the scope of the work performed by the employees, and intrude into their private or personal sphere.
Are not transparent to the employees, as they do not inform them of the monitoring and its precise scope, and do not give them the opportunity to object or opt out of the monitoring.
Involve the processing of special categories of personal data, such as biometric data or data revealing political opinions or trade union membership, which are not necessary or proportionate for the purposes of the monitoring, and which do not fall under any of the exceptions listed in the regulation.
Involve the transfer of personal data to a third country, such as China, which does not provide an adequate level of data protection, and which may pose additional risks for the rights and freedoms of the employees.
References:
GDPR, Articles 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, and
49.
EDPB Guidelines 3/2019 on processing of personal data through video devices, pages 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12,
13, and 14.
EDPB Guidelines 07/2020 on the concepts of controller and processor in the GDPR, pages 19, 20, 21, 22, 23,
24, 25, 26, 27, and 28.
EDPB Guidelines 4/2019 on Article 25 Data Protection by Design and by Default, pages 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11,
12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, and 28.
EDPB Guidelines 2/2018 on derogations of Article 49 under Regulation 2016/679, pages 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10,
11, and 12.
Data protection: GDPR and employee surveilance | Feature | Law Gazette, paragraphs 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8.