Statement of the State Inspector’s Service on Disclosure of Personal Data of a Citizen Holding Two Identity Cards

2021-10-30 17:03:23

On October 30, 2021, the voting day of the second round of the local self-government elections, the member of “the United National Movement - United Opposition "Strength in Unity" bloc released information about one of the citizens holding two ID cards and of the fact of voting using allegedly forged documents. According to the party representative, it constituted evidence of the violation of the law and the commission of an alleged criminal offence. Along with the announcement, the personal data of the mentioned citizen was also made public.

In response to the released information, the LEPL - Public Service Development Agency explained the reasons for possession of two identity documents by the citizen and registration of the mentioned voter with the older surname in the voter list - change of surname as a result of marriage. In relation to the fact, the State Inspector’s Service clarifies that there is always a high public interest towards election processes. According to the Law of Georgia on Personal Data Protection, the existence of significant public interest is one of the grounds for the processing, including disclosure of personal data.  Based on the above, informing the public about alleged violations during the election process and disclosing personal data by the public agency in response to such alleged violations, when it is done to satisfy the public interest, for a lawful purpose, without violating the dignity of the data subject and to the extent necessary to achieve a lawful purpose, is to be deemed lawful.  In parallel to this, the State Inspector’s Service calls on all persons engaged in the election process, as well as the media, to respect individuals’ privacy and strike a fair balance between the right to privacy, on the one hand and the legitimate interest of informing the public, on the other. At the same time, they should process the personal data in their possession fairly and lawfully, without prejudice to the dignity of citizens, only to the extent necessary to achieve a lawful purpose.