The protection of personal data as an autonomous constitutional right in Ecuador

Abstract

The objective of this study was to analyze the evolution of the case law of the Constitutional Court of Ecuador regarding the establishment of personal data protection as an autonomous constitutional right and to determine the main limits established for the exercise of habeas data. A qualitative, legal-doctrinal methodology was employed, based on a documentary and jurisprudential analysis of selected decisions by the Constitutional Court, through a systematic review of its criteria regarding personal data, information processing, informational self-determination, the scope, and the limits of the guarantee. The results demonstrated a gradual consolidation of data protection as a right with its own distinct content—separate from, yet related to, privacy—as well as the recognition of the rights to access, rectify, update, delete, and control personal information. Likewise, a gradual delimitation of habeas data was identified in relation to claims aimed at establishing rights, resolving disputes unrelated to data protection, accessing third-party information, or producing economic effects that exceed its constitutional purpose. The study concludes that Ecuadorian constitutional jurisprudence has established a complementary relationship between the substantive autonomy of the right to data protection and the functional delimitation of habeas data, providing relevant criteria to strengthen its protection in the face of challenges arising from the digital transformation.