In its decision of February 8, 2021, GZ D213.1166, 2020-0.849.832, the data protection authority ruled in an official investigation against a water association established as a corporation under public law that data processing by smart water meters is unlawful due to the lack of a legal basis. This decision is not legally binding.
After the decision was issued, two companies filed an application with the data protection authority to establish their status as parties to the proceedings. One of the applicants manufactures said water meters; the other distributes, installs and operates them.
In this case, the data protection authority came to the conclusion that the applicants were not entitled to party status: The official review procedure was conducted exclusively against the data controller and the decision was issued against the data controller. Although the applicants were deemed to have an economic interest, this did not constitute a party status based on the definition of a party set forth in Section 8 of the General Administrative Procedures Act (AVG) and the material-specific regulations on the allocation of roles under data protection law. Moreover, in accordance with public law jurisprudence, only the addressee of a supervisory authority decision has party status, but not third parties.
This decision is not legally binding.