Do you own an online store? Do you know the data protection obligations in electronic commerce?

At the Pérez Parras Economists & Lawyers Firm in Málaga and Nerja we are experts in Commercial Law and Data Protection, and in all aspects related to your business:

• Constitution of societies,
• Taxation and accounting for companies and self-employed people,
• Establishment of offline and online businesses, as well as
• The aspects related to the protection of personal data of your clients, suppliers, that you store and manage, etc…

Electronic Commerce

We are experts in guaranteeing the protection of personal data in your online store

What is electronic commerce?

It is any transaction between an e-commerce service provider and a user, which is carried out using some electronic means.

When a user makes an electronic transaction, the service provider processes their personal data. The following situations are examples of data processing:

• User registration in the online store or website
• Use of the electronic service (download of electronic book, music, software, etc…)
• Electronic payment.

According to the CNMC (National Commission on Markets and Competition ), the e-commerce activities that carry more weight are:

• Travel agencies and tour operators,
• Air transport,
• Clothing,
• Hotels and accommodations in general
• Gambling and betting,
• Overland transport of travellers,
• Direct marketing, etc …

resulting, in reference to the second quarter of 2018, to more than 9,300 million electronic transactions in Spain.

What specific data should be treated in Electronic Commerce?

When we hire an electronic commerce platform to give us the service that will help us set up our online store (we will become the providers of the online commerce service) and the platform then collects and manages our customers’ data, we must sign an agreement with this platform. Through this agreement, we act as the provider of the e-commerce service, and the e-commerce platform as the processor in charge.

But the use of such e-commerce platform may entail the existence of international data transfers. Therefore, we must take precautions and guarantees related to this situation.

Who should guarantee the principles of data protection when we offer an e-commerce service?

It will be us, as providers of the electronic commerce service.  We will ensure that our users’ rights are satisfied regarding the protection of their personal data:

  • Legality,
  • Transparency,
  • Limitation of the purpose,
  • Accuracy,
  • Confidentiality,
  • Limitation of the term of conservation of personal data, etc …
Data Protection in E-commerce

As providers of electronic commerce service, we make sure to inform our users / buyers through our e-commerce platform of the purposes for which we will treat their personal data

In this respect, at the Pérez Parras Economists & Lawyers Firm in Málaga and Nerja , we are experts in Data Protection and Digital Law, as well as in the constitution of societies and cooperatives, and in all their aspects. The group of nine lawyers, economists, engineers and social graduates that make up this professional firm, works in a coordinated manner to provide an integral service to the professional or private client.

For this, we provide a complete advisory service which entails:

  • The constitution of companies,
  • Documentation management and calculation of capital increases of partners in investment rounds, shareholders agreements, etc …
  • Accounting and taxation of companies and businesses, or self-employed workers,
  • Tax management
  • Labour management of your business and your employees: payroll setup, employee registrations and dismissals, collective agreements, layoffs, etc… choosing the best type of contract, advice on compliance with occupational risk prevention regulations and others, etc…
  • Guidance and defence from our legal team 
  • Defence in cases of intellectual property 
  • Registration of trademarks, utility models and patents,
  • Implementation of data protection, risk analysis, etc…

What is the purpose of processing personal data in electronic commerce?

The usual objectives that legitimise the processing of data in the field of e-commerce are:
• Providing products or services within the legitimate provision of the contract between the e-commerce service provider (us) and our customer or user of online commerce
• Managing electronic payment for the contracting or purchase of products or services covered by the contract
• Managing user complaints for the provision of the service
• Sending commercial communications to our e-commerce users by email,
• Etc…

In any case, as providers of the electronic commerce service, we must:

INFORM our users / buyers through our e-commerce platform of the OBJECTIVES for treating their personal data that we are collecting.

Which are the bases that legitimise the treatment of our e-commerce clients’ data?

In electronic commerce, we will typically be able to process our customers’ data based on:
• The explicit consent of our client buyers
• The need to carry out the contract that allows us to sell to our customers products or services through our online trading platform
• Our duly complying with a legal obligation.

Finally, the liabilities of the providers of electrical commerce services, as responsible for their online commerce business, continue to be to inform their customers / users of:

  • the personal data they possess,
  • how they treat them, as well as
  • cookies (or other technologies such as web beacons) that the provider uses.