{"id":30470,"date":"2025-01-09T13:09:25","date_gmt":"2025-01-09T12:09:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mailcommsgroup.com\/?p=30470"},"modified":"2026-08-26T14:39:00","modified_gmt":"2026-08-26T12:39:00","slug":"what-is-a-personal-and-what-is-not","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mailcommsgroup.com\/en\/blog\/what-is-a-personal-and-what-is-not\/","title":{"rendered":"What constitutes personal data under the GDPR, and what does not?"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”30506″ img_size=”full” css=””][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”20px”][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1787747297118{padding-top: 50px !important;padding-right: 50px !important;padding-bottom: 50px !important;padding-left: 50px !important;background-color: #f2f2f2 !important;}”]Table of Contents <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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  1. \n
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    1. Context and background<\/a><\/li>\n
    2. Existing types of personal data<\/a><\/li>\n
    3. Specially protected data<\/a>\n
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      1. How do you collect personal data?<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n
      2. Frequently Asked Questions<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

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        What Is Personal Data Under the GDPR: Definition in Article 4.1<\/strong><\/h2>\n

        [\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=””]According to Article 4.1 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR, Regulation (EU) 2016\/679), personal data is any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person. A person is considered identifiable if they can be identified, directly or indirectly, in particular by reference to an identifier such as their name, an identification number, location data, an online identifier, or one or more factors specific to the physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural, or social identity of that person. <\/span>The question to ask as the headline of this article is very common in environments where the GDPR has some influence or even in our personal life, when a company asks us for consent to process our personal data for different purposes. “Well, why not, but first I would like to know what is considered personal data<\/strong>“.<\/p>\n

        We will respond in depth.<\/strong><\/p>\n

        To get straight to the point, we will say that personal data is any information and\/or characteristic that makes it possible to identify or make identifiable any person<\/strong>. This is defined in Article 4.1 of the GDPR. <\/p>\n

        Consequently, the image of a person is personal data, as is any information that allows to determine, directly or indirectly, his identity, such as, for example, a name, an identification number, a telephone number, a vehicle license plate, an IP address… Or even anthropometric characteristics that allow to unequivocally identify a person<\/strong>, as the Spanish Data Protection Agency (AEPD) has considered on numerous occasions.<\/p>\n

        On the other hand, personal data would not be those that do not facilitate the identification of the natural person<\/strong>, such as, for example: commercial registration number (CIF), a generic e-mail address, such as info@, and others.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”120px” el_id=”dos” css=”.vc_custom_1726586274173{margin-top: -100px !important;}”][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1736338949755{padding-top: 15px !important;padding-right: 15px !important;padding-bottom: 15px !important;padding-left: 15px !important;background-color: #47d7ac !important;}”]<\/p>\n

        Categories of personal data recognized by the GDPR<\/strong><\/h2>\n

        [\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=””]The GDPR recognizes the existence of categories of personal data<\/strong> and even determines a very specific one referring to specially protected data.<\/strong><\/p>\n

        Below is an approximate list of the types of personal data that exist:<\/p>\n

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        1. Identifying data: <\/strong>name, ID card number, Social Security number, telephone number, address, signature, user name, IP address, etc.<\/li>\n
        2. Personal characteristics: <\/strong>physical characteristics, preferences, hobbies, date of birth, etc.<\/li>\n
        3. Family and social circumstances:<\/strong> number of children, leaves of absence, leaves of absence, etc.<\/li>\n
        4. Employment information:<\/strong> professional category, job position, professional experience, payroll, etc.<\/li>\n
        5. Academic and professional data:<\/strong> education, degrees, academic history, etc.<\/li>\n
        6. Time and attendance control:<\/strong> clocking in at the workstation or access control to the facilities.<\/li>\n
        7. Financial:<\/strong> income, income, bank details, etc.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

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          Special categories of personal data under Article 9 of the GDPR<\/strong><\/h2>\n

          [\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=””]In relation to the category of specially protected data<\/strong>, provided for in article 9 of the GDPR, are those data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, trade union membership, genetic data[1]<\/a>, biometric data[2]<\/a> aimed at uniquely identifying a natural person, data concerning the health or life and sexual orientations of a natural person.<\/p>\n

          The processing of this type of data is prohibited, unless it complies with a number of exceptions<\/strong>, such as the following:<\/p>\n