News

Commissioner Milan Marinović and Deputy Commissioner Sanja Unković participated in the Seventh Meeting of the Competent Authorities Dealing with Personal Data Protection in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia, which was held in Ptuj, Slovenia, this year.

At this year's meeting, participants discussed current issues of personal data protection in the region, and specific topics covered included the harmonization of national laws with the EU data protection framework and their modernization, the implementation of data protection strategies, the identification of data leaks using modern platforms, the interrelationship between data protection and artificial intelligence, biometric identification cameras in public spaces, as well as the challenges that data protection authorities face when working with new technologies with limited resources.

Data protection authorities highlighted the importance of such cooperation, which encourages the exchange of best practices and experiences and enables the creation of synergies in the field of personal data protection. Intensive cooperation is of even greater importance in times of rapid technological development, including artificial intelligence, where the protection of human rights can be seriously jeopardized if the competent regulators do not provide an adequate response. Тo ensure a timely and adequate response to new technological challenges, the members of the 20i7 Initiative emphasized the need for data protection authorities to be adequately staffed and politically, financially, and factually independent. Any political or other pressure that jeopardizes their independence should be considered unacceptable, as it poses a threat to the rule of law and the protection of fundamental rights.

On the sidelines of the meeting, the Commissioner and the Deputy Commissioner held a series of bilateral meetings with colleagues from the region.

On August 13, 2025, a one-day training on the application of the Law on Personal Data Protection was held for employees of the Public Utility Company "Belgrade Waterworks and Sewerage".

The training was held at the company's premises in Makiš, attended by representatives from all sectors of the company. Due to great interest and the impracticability of attending in person, the training and presentation were also attended by employees from remote locations (online). The training was conducted by representatives and accredited lecturers of the Sector for Education: Aleksandra Lakićević and Marko Milošević, with technical support from colleague Natasa Gazivoda Borković.

During the training, the emphasis was put on the lawfulness of personal data processing, with the application of all processing principles and appropriate personal data protection measures. In addition to these issues, special attention was paid to data retention periods and methods for determining these periods in accordance with the purpose of personal data processing.

During July, the Commissioner organized training for representatives of the private sector - Coming – Computer Engineering doo (June 25) and Maxbet (June 29) at the initiative of these companies. The training focused on their familiarization with the obligations under the Law and finding an adequate legal basis for data processing. In this context, the participants were introduced to the model act on legitimate interest assessment (Serbian language only) as well as the mandatory elements of the contract in the controller-processor relationship. To properly understand the application of the provisions of the Personal Data Protection Law, through the application of the principles, the most characteristic data processing was presented to the representatives of these companies. Around fifty employees attended the training sessions, and the Commissioner intends to extend such training to other actors from these sectors to raise awareness on the proper application of this regulation.

On July 16, lecturers from the Sector for Education and Certification, Marko Milošević and Nemanja Damjanović, held a training on the implementation of the Law on Personal Data Protection for employees of the Human Resources Management Service.

30 employees attended the training. During the training, the emphasis was on data processing in the work of this Service and identifying the obligations under the Law. The application of protection measures was emphasized, particularly the pseudonymization measure, to ensure public competition transparency and personal data protection. In addition to these issues, special attention was paid to data retention periods and methods of properly determining those periods in regards to personal data processing. Since the main activity of this authority is the selection and management of human resources, conducting psychological assessments of candidates, employees were also familiarized with the importance of proper protection of special categories of personal data. In two-way communication, representatives of the Commissioner aimed to resolve existing doubts among employees and improve their level of knowledge about personal data protection.