EXCLUSIVE: Initial impacts of Brazil's new Data Protection law

By Natália Scalzaretto and Ariádne Mussato

Sep 25, 2020 15:23 7 min read (Updated: Sep 25, 2020 15:57)

You’re reading The Brazilian Report’s weekly tech roundup, a digest of the most important news on technology and innovation in Brazil. This week’s topics: the first impacts of Brazil’s new data protection law, challenges of green lithium mining in Latin America, and Brazil’s booming electronic sector.

First reactions to Brazil’s new Data Protection Law

Brazil’s new general data protection law (LGPD) is already causing a headache for non-compliant companies, even though sanctions can only be applied as of August 2021. Exclusive data provided to The Brazilian Report by customer protection institute Reclame Aqui shows that customers have wasted no time filing grievances related to data protection. In the week the law was enacted, complaints went up almost 74 percent.

So far, no one company or sector has been affected the most. Giants such as Banco Pan bank, retailer Magazine Luiza, and credit bureau Serasa Experian were among the firms that received the most complaints from customers.

Litigation. At least two companies have faced lawsuits concerning data protection issues. The first was filed by the Public Prosecution Service in the capital city Brasilia, suing a Minas Gerais company that sells personal data such as people’s names, emails, addresses, and phone numbers. Prosecutors believe over 500,000 people in the state of São Paulo alone had their information sold — but there were victims from all over the country.

Meanwhile, in Recife, a student filed a lawsuit against the company that manages the city’s public transport card system, after his card was blocked due to a lack of biometric registration. The student questions whether the company even has the right to collect biometric data.

Why it matters. Brazilian consumers are increasingly aware of their rights over their personal data. While companies will have one year until fines are issued, the first days of the law show that they better get their act together.