Privacy notices versus informational self-determination: Minding the gap

Privacy notices are instruments that intend to inform individuals of the processing of their personal data, their rights as data subjects, as well as any other information required by data protection or privacy laws. The goal of this paper is to clarify the current discourse regarding the (in)utility of privacy notices, particularly in the context of online transactions. The perspective is a European one, meaning that the analysis shall be geared towards the European Data protection framework, particularly the European Data Protection Directive. The paper discusses the role that privacy notices play under the European data protection framework today, summarizes the main critiques regarding the use of privacy notices in practice and develops a number of recommendations.