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The CNIL’s Economic Analysis Unit unveils its 2026–2028 work programme
In 2023, the CNIL established a dedicated service for the economic analysis of issues related to personal data, with the aim of strengthening its expertise and informing its decisions through impact assessments, sectoral analyses, and quantitative studies evaluating the economic effects of its rulings.
It is indeed essential for a data protection authority to have a solid understanding of the economic stakes underlying the projects whose compliance with data protection rules it is required to assess.
Accordingly, in an article dated 2 February 2026 [1], the CNIL announces that over the next three years it will continue its previous analyses in several key areas :
- Competition, consumer protection, and market contestability ;
- Economic impact assessments of the GDPR ;
- The economics of sanctions ;
- The uses of artificial intelligence.
At the same time, the CNIL intends to broaden the scope of its work to address emerging and topical issues.
- The value and pricing of personal data : the CNIL seeks to further explore how to quantify the value of personal data for individuals. In particular, it will analyse the “consent or pay” model.
- The economics of data warehouses : this topic is especially significant in light of the forthcoming application of the European Health Data Space (EHDS) Regulation. The proliferation of health data warehouses designed to foster research, health evaluation, and the development of high-performance and innovative analytical tools—particularly those incorporating AI—inevitably raises questions regarding the monetisation and added value generated through the processing of such data.
The programme also includes the development of simplified compliance tools to support startups, as well as the launch of an annual survey aimed at measuring the effectiveness of the CNIL’s actions and the level of satisfaction among its various stakeholders.