European consumers and business would lose millions of euros without strong data protection rules

New research from Assembly Research, commissioned by BEUC, shows that privacy has real economic value and that strong enforcement of the GDPR benefits not only consumers, but businesses and the wider European economy. Strong rights help build the trust and confidence that a healthy digital economy depends on.

Most consumers are unaware that they lose out of over €100 euros per year from Big Tech companies exploiting their personal data in the secondary data market. On top of that, the impact of data breaches is swift and devastating for both sides:  57% of consumers admit having given up using a digital service out of fear that their personal data might be misused. And approximately 60% of small businesses close their doors within six months of a data breach.

Read more about the results in the full report.

Agustín Reyna, Director General of BEUC, said: “The discussions around simplifying the EU rulebook too often focus on the cost of regulation, while ignoring the cost of no regulation. Strong privacy and data protection rules may come with responsibilities for companies, but failing to enforce them or even weakening them comes with a price too, for both consumers and businesses.

“Data breaches and phishing attacks due to the lack of involvement of a Data Protection Officer cost European businesses about €406m per year. These results reinforce what BEUC has said from the start: ensuring consumer rights and boosting competitiveness can go hand in hand. Europe should think twice before trading away these protections as policymakers negotiate on the Digital Omnibus proposal."

Background information
The latest proposal on the Digital Omnibus threatens to undo over a decade of regulatory refinement and legal precedence, placing the personal data of millions of Europeans directly in the hands of US Big Tech, while restricting consumers' ability to seek redress when their data is misused.

BEUC called on Member States to reconsider this proposal, to ensure the Digital Omnibus does not undermine European consumers’ rights and more fundamentally that it does not unnecessarily expose them to potential harmful AI practices stemming from the use of their personal data.