What evidence do auditors commonly ask for on Art.11 Processing which does not require identification?

Analysis of which datasets are processed without the ability to identify the individual, and the basis for that conclusion; The documented position on why additional identifying information is not held, showing it was not discarded to avoid rights requests; The response given to a data subject whose request cannot be met for want of identification, including the invitation to supply identifying information; The procedure for accepting and using additional information a data subject supplies to enable identification.

What is the most common gap auditors find on Art.11?

Article 11 claimed for data that is in fact linkable through a device identifier, an account key or a join with another held dataset

GDPR · Chapter II - Principles

`Art.11` Processing which does not require identification

Where the purposes of processing do not or no longer require the controller to identify the data subject, the controller is not obliged to maintain, acquire or process additional information solely in order to comply with the Regulation. Where the controller can demonstrate it is not in a position to identify the data subject, it must inform the data subject accordingly if possible, and Articles 15 to 20 then do not apply unless the data subject provides additional information enabling identification in order to exercise those rights.

Source: GDPR, Art.11. The statement above is our statement of the clause, read from the published text and cited so you can check it against the official text, not the instrument verbatim. Open GDPR in the compliance library.

Many articles apply only where their condition is met (a data protection officer under Article 37, an impact assessment under Article 35, a representative under Article 27); the condition is in each statement.

artefacts

held by a system

at each review

hard

to go live

Document repository

where the evidence lives

teal = a system already holds it · olive = produced at each review. To go live: easy when half or more of the artefacts are already held by a system, moderate from a quarter to a half, hard below a quarter.

These are the artefacts auditors commonly ask for on this requirement, our guidance rather than text from the standard. Your assessor decides what is sufficient in your context, and asks for samples across the period when a report covers one.

system holds itEvidence a system already holds

none for this control

periodic reviewEvidence produced at each review

none for this control

governing documentDocuments that govern the control

Analysis of which datasets are processed without the ability to identify the individual, and the basis for that conclusion · Document repository
The documented position on why additional identifying information is not held, showing it was not discarded to avoid rights requests · Document repository
The response given to a data subject whose request cannot be met for want of identification, including the invitation to supply identifying information · Policy repository / GRC workspace
The procedure for accepting and using additional information a data subject supplies to enable identification · Policy repository / GRC workspace

First move

No system holds this evidence for you: it is people and documents. Reminders and routing to the owner still save time. Put the document under version control with an owner and review date, and log each review as a record with reviewer and date.

Common gaps auditors find

Article 11 claimed for data that is in fact linkable through a device identifier, an account key or a join with another held dataset
The data subject never informed that the controller cannot identify them, so the request simply goes unanswered
Additional identifying information supplied by a data subject refused or ignored rather than used to service the right
Extra identifiers demanded from every requester as a matter of routine, which is the opposite of what the Article permits

Do this for your whole sheet

Paste the rows you run your controls from and get this mapping for every control at once, with the periodic-review ones flagged and a first move per row. No account for the first run.

Build my evidence sheet

Art.10 Processing of personal data relating to criminal convictions · Art.12 Transparent information, communication and modalities for rights