News
The largest bank in Denmark - Danske Bank - is set to be fined DKK 10 million (approximately € 1.35 million)
The Danish Data Protection Authority has found that the largest bank in Denmark - Danske Bank - has failed to demonstrate that it has deleted personal data in accordance with GDPR and has therefore reported Danske Bank to the police and imposed a fine of DKK 10 million (approximately € 1.35 million) on the bank.

Even though the bank itself came forward and reported on its challenges in complying with GDPR regulation, the Danish Data Protection Authority has imposed a historically large fine on the bank.
The decision comes after the Danish Data Protection Authority ex officio opened in November 2020 after the bank itself came forward with that it had identified issues with deleting personal data, for which there was not necessarily a commercial justification for continuing to process.
The bank itself has stated that it was already aware of the deleting and retention of data in October 2016. The bank therefore began a major compliance operation before the cut-off date of 25 May 2018 of the entry into force of the GDPR.
The Data Protection Authority's investigation found that the bank - in more than 400 systems - was unable to document, that policies were in place for the deletion and storing of personal data, or that personal data was deleted manually. The systems in question processes personal data of several million people.
The bank itself has stated that a working group of 20 people put a total of 15,000 hours into the effort to map all its processes up to the year when the GDPR came into force. The bank itself attributes its problem with storing and deleting personal data to a complex IT landscape with multiple systems, of both central and local character.
Kenni Elm Olsen, a special consultant at the Danish Data Protection Authority has in a press release stated: “One of the basic principles of the GDPR is that one should only process data that one needs - and when it is no longer needed, it should be deleted. When it comes to an organization the size of Danske Bank, which has many and complex systems, it is particularly crucial to be able to document that the deletion actually takes place."
Why a police report?
The Danish Data Protection Authority always makes a concrete assessment of the seriousness of the case, pursuant to Article 83 (2) of the GDPR, when assessing which sanction the authority considers to be the correct one.
In assessing whether a fine should be imposed, the Danish Data Protection Authority has considered the fact that the infringement relates to a fundamental principle of the processing of personal data and affects a very large number of data subjects.
In its assessment of the case, the Danish Data Protection Authority has taken into account the nature and gravity of the infringement and the requirement of the GDPR that a fine in each case must be effective, proportionate and have a deterrent effect.
It has also been taken into consideration that the bank has made efforts to demonstrate that it complies with its obligations. This means that the bank has sought to limit the harm that data subjects could potentially suffer.
In addition, the Danish Data Protection Authority has emphasized that Danske Bank has actively contributed to the disclosure of the case. Despite the bank's willingness and thousands of hours of compliance work, the bank is now set for the largest GDPR fine in Danish history if the case goes as the Danish Data Protection Authority has suggested.
The fine
Whether the fine is historically high or amounts to 'peanuts' for a company like Danske Bank depends largely on the eyes of the beholder.
The level of fines in Denmark has previously been criticized for being too low when it has come to breaches of GDPR. An example of this occurred in 2021, when a furniture company was set to receive a fine of DKK 1.5 million (approximately € 200.000), but when the case went to court, the fine was lowered to DKK 100,000 (approximately € 13.500).
In the case of Danske Bank, however, the level of the fine imposed is six or seven times higher than any previous fine imposed by the Danish Data Protection Authority, which is why the fine imposed constitutes a significant signal from the Danish Data Protection Authority.
It will be interesting to see whether the public prosecutor will come through with the fine, as this will undoubtedly set a new and significant precedent for the Danish level of fines for violations of the GDPR.
Article provided by INPLP member: Claas Thöle (Advores Advokater & Rechtsanwälte, Denmark)
Discover more about the INPLP and the INPLP-Members
Dr. Tobias Höllwarth (Managing Director INPLP)
News Archiv
- Alle zeigen
- November 2023
- Oktober 2023
- September 2023
- August 2023
- Juli 2023
- Juni 2023
- Mai 2023
- April 2023
- März 2023
- Februar 2023
- Jänner 2023
- Dezember 2022
- November 2022
- Oktober 2022
- September 2022
- August 2022
- Juli 2022
- Mai 2022
- April 2022
- März 2022
- Februar 2022
- November 2021
- September 2021
- Juli 2021
- Mai 2021
- April 2021
- Dezember 2020
- November 2020
- Oktober 2020
- Juni 2020
- März 2020
- Dezember 2019
- Oktober 2019
- September 2019
- August 2019
- Juli 2019
- Juni 2019
- Mai 2019
- April 2019
- März 2019
- Februar 2019
- Jänner 2019
- Dezember 2018
- November 2018
- Oktober 2018
- September 2018
- August 2018
- Juli 2018
- Juni 2018
- Mai 2018
- April 2018
- März 2018
- Februar 2018
- Dezember 2017
- November 2017
- Oktober 2017
- September 2017
- August 2017
- Juli 2017
- Juni 2017
- Mai 2017
- April 2017
- März 2017
- Februar 2017
- November 2016
- Oktober 2016
- September 2016
- Juli 2016
- Juni 2016
- Mai 2016
- April 2016
- März 2016
- Februar 2016
- Jänner 2016
- Dezember 2015
- November 2015
- Oktober 2015
- September 2015
- August 2015
- Juli 2015
- Juni 2015
- Mai 2015
- April 2015
- März 2015
- Februar 2015
- Jänner 2015
- Dezember 2014
- November 2014
- Oktober 2014
- September 2014
- August 2014
- Juli 2014
- Juni 2014
- Mai 2014
- April 2014
- März 2014
- Februar 2014
- Jänner 2014
- Dezember 2013
- November 2013
- Oktober 2013
- September 2013
- August 2013
- Juli 2013
- Juni 2013
- Mai 2013
- April 2013
- März 2013
- Februar 2013
- Jänner 2013
- Dezember 2012
- November 2012
- Oktober 2012
- September 2012
- August 2012
- Juli 2012
- Juni 2012
- Mai 2012
- April 2012
- März 2012
- Februar 2012
- Jänner 2012
- Dezember 2011
- November 2011
- Oktober 2011
- September 2011
- Juli 2011
- Juni 2011
- Mai 2011
- April 2011
- März 2011
- Februar 2011
- Jänner 2011
- November 2010
- Oktober 2010
- September 2010
- Juli 2010