Digital payment methods are increasingly replacing cash. This has consequences for the privacy of citizens. The European privacy supervisor EDPS warns of this.
Partly because of the corona pandemic, there are more new contactless payment methods. These include smartphones, QR codes and NFC for payments.
Digital payment methods rely heavily on data processing. The involvement of different parties in processing digital payments can have all sorts of data protection implications, the EDPS argues. "Because of the way card-based payments work, traceability is inherent, exposing data subjects to a variety of risks."
Transactions recorded with digital payment methods can reveal a variety of personal data. Examples include ethnicity, political views, religious or philosophical beliefs, union membership, health data and sexual orientation. "Tracking a person's payments can describe the consumer's life in great detail," the EDPS said.
