GDPR Article 4(1): what personal data is (Regulation (EU) 2016/679, Art 4(1))
Anything that can identify a living person, directly or through other details, is personal data: a name, an email address, a customer number, an IP address, or a combination of facts in a support ticket. A holder sorting its records starts from this test.
Dated 18 Oct 2026Source checked 18 Oct 2026Basis: primary text
In the source's own words
“'personal data' means any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person ('data subject'); an identifiable natural person is one who can be identified, directly or indirectly, in particular by reference to an identifier such as a name, an identification number, location data, an online identifier or to one or more factors specific to the physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural or social identity of that natural person;”
Where it was read
Also read from the same source
- GDPR Article 5(1)(b): purpose limitation (Regulation (EU) 2016/679, Art 5(1)(b))
- GDPR Article 6(1)(f): legitimate interests as a lawful basis (Regulation (EU) 2016/679, Art 6(1)(f))
- GDPR Article 6(4): compatibility test for a new purpose (Regulation (EU) 2016/679, Art 6(4))
- GDPR Recital 50: further processing and the legal basis (Regulation (EU) 2016/679, recital 50)
- GDPR Article 9(1): special categories of personal data (Regulation (EU) 2016/679, Art 9(1))
- GDPR Article 13(3): telling people before a new purpose (Regulation (EU) 2016/679, Art 13(3))
Figures it counts in
It is shown on its own, not counted into a figure.
Cited in this guide