The European Data Protection Regulation: Impact on Non-Compliant Businesses

The European Regulation 2016/679 on the protection of personal data (GDPR) continues to play a pivotal role in business law, with increasingly tangible impacts on companies. In January 2025, the European Commission launched a series of inspections in the digital sector to strengthen the enforcement of data privacy rules. Businesses must ensure compliance with Articles 5 (principles related to data processing), 32 (data processing security), and 58 (investigatory powers of supervisory authorities) of the GDPR. Administrative fines for non-compliant businesses can reach up to 4% of global annual turnover or 20 million euros, whichever is higher. This emphasizes the importance of swiftly ensuring compliance and reassessing internal data protection policies to avoid penalties.