The European Council recently approved a final version of the EU Data Act. The Act applies to manufacturers of connected devices. Among other things, it gives consumers certain rights about the information those devices collect. The Act is viewed as part of an overall data strategy by the EU, and complements both GDPR and the Data Governance Act.

The requirements will not go into effect until mid-2025. Among other things, under the Act those who create connected products will need to ensure that data collected from these devices is portable for both users and in some cases governments. To accomplish this, the Act requires manufacturers to design products in a way that makes data sharing easy.

Putting it into Practice: These requirements are part of a growing interconnected set of requirements in the EU around treatment of data. As companies develop new interconnected products, they will want to keep in mind these upcoming obligations.