This working paper has been prepared by the Members of IAB Europe’s GDPR Implementation Working Group (GIG), under the leadership of Quantcast.

The purpose of this paper is to explain the concept of Personal Data as defined under the GDPR, and why it matters to the online advertising industry. The paper takes the point of view that companies should err on the side of caution and presume that the data they process is personal data. If companies wish to argue that the data they argue is not personal, we recommend extreme caution and due diligence be taken to substantiate this.

This is the second in a series of working papers published by IAB Europe’s GDPR Implementation Working Group. IAB Europe’s GDPR Implementation Working Group brings together leading experts from across the digital advertising industry to discuss the European Union’s new data protection law, share best practices, and agree on common interpretations and industry positioning on the most important issues for the digital advertising sector. The GDPR Implementation Working Group is a member-driven forum for discussion and thought leadership, its important contribution to the digital advertising industry’s GDPR compliance efforts is only possible thanks to the work and leadership of its many participating members.