Data rights have been present in Europe for more than fifty years, but have failed to make residents feel substantially more empowered about their personal information and digital life (EC, 2015; EC, 2019). Studies show that many organisations lack awareness and understanding of the rights (Ausloos and Dewitte, 2018), do not respond within legal timeframes (Mahieu et al., 2017), and (if they do) fail to provide all the required information (Norris et al., 2017). 

This action research project aims to amplify the use and usefulness of data rights by creating an intermediary service. By making data rights easier to use, we expect to: 

1. empower Danish residents to more actively exercise their Right to Access through a user-friendly interface and by mediating between the individual and the data controller
2. gather first-of-its-kind longitudinal data on compliance with data rights in Denmark;
3. increase the pressure on data controllers to align their organizational practice in a way that makes complying with data rights easier.

References
Ausloos, J., & Dewitte, P. (2018). Shattering One-Way Mirrors. Data Subject Access Rights in Practice. Data Subject Access Rights in Practice (January 20, 2018). International Data Privacy Law, 8(1), 4-28.

European Commission. (2015). Special Eurobarometer 431: “Data protection”.

European Commission. (2019). Special Eurobarometer 487a: “The General Data Protection Regulation”

Mahieu, R., Asghari, H., & van Eeten, M. (2018). Collectively exercising the right of access: individual effort, societal effect. Internet Policy Review, 7(3). 

Norris, C., de Hert, P., L’Hoiry, X., & Galetta, A. (Eds.). (2017). The Unaccountable State of Surveillance: Exercising Access Rights in Europe (Vol. 34). Springer International Publishing.