The ICRC and data protection

Safeguarding people’s personal data, particularly in challenging conditions such as armed conflicts and other humanitarian emergencies, is an essential aspect of protecting people's lives, their physical and mental integrity and their dignity.

In, Antananarivo, Madagascar, ICRC delegates assess conditions of detention during a private talk with a prisoner.

ICRC Data Protection Framework

We have established a data protection framework that affords people protections in accordance with international standards. It includes the ICRC Rules on Personal Data Protection, revised in 2020, and provides for a supervisory and control mechanism overseen by both the Data Protection Office and an independent data protection commission.

ICRC Rules on Personal Data Protection

We apply data protection standards that preserve the integrity, confidentiality and availability of personal data, and respect the rights, freedoms and dignity of the people we interact with and whose data we process.

ICRC Data Protection Office

The ICRC Data Protection Office is the ICRC's supervisory body with regard to all matters of personal data protection. It is empowered to perform its duties with complete independence. 

ICRC Data Protection Commission

The ICRC Data Protection Commission is responsible for checking that our processing of personal data complies with the ICRC Rules on Personal Data Protection and other applicable rules, and for making determinations on individuals’ rights when data protection cases are referred to it.