Online behavioral marketing and personal data protection

Due to advancements in information and communication technologies coupled with the growing utilization of the internet, digital technologies have permeated, altered, and reshaped the economic, social, cultural, and political facets of society. These transformative changes have facilitated numerous activities—ranging from banking operations to healthcare, and from social media interactions to commercial engagements—through digital networks. Notably, advancements in e-commerce have augmented the significance of digital markets within the global economy. While such expansive digital markets and varied online transactions confer benefits by streamlining operations and yielding economic efficiencies, they concurrently introduce challenges pertaining to data security. The proliferation and diversification of personal data collected during digital transactions and the enhanced mobility of such data have amplified the potential for diverse processing by unauthorized third parties. This not only impedes individuals' control over their personal data, which is safeguarded under fundamental rights and freedoms, but also heightens the risk of infringements leading to tangible and intangible damages. Nonetheless, the global landscape recognizes the indispensable value of the burgeoning digital economy. It is seemingly implausible for states, entities, and organizations to maintain a prosperous economic trajectory without a digital presence. Recognizing these dynamics, the European Union has consistently prioritized the protection of personal data since the early 2000s. The European Union, both to protect the fundamental rights and freedoms on which the moral roots of the Union are based, within the scope of current and harmonized laws in the face of developing technologies, as well as to complete the formation of the European digital single market, to get its rightful share from the digital economy, which increases its share in total trade by developing day by day, in order not to lose its competitive advantage against its global competitors, makes various legal regulations regarding the protection of personal data. A notable manifestation of this commitment is the European Union General Data Protection Regulation, which was enacted in 2018. The protection of personal data in the digital age has been a significant concern on the global agenda for a long time. Particularly within the borders of the European Union, important steps have been taken to ensure appropriate, sufficient, and necessary protection. This analysis initially delves into the domain of personal data protection and the pertinent legislation in Turkey. It then elucidates regulations instituted, and anticipated, by the European Union concerning personal data protection, emphasizing online behavioral marketing practices. Given the pervasive influence of the digital revolution, manifesting predominantly through online behavioral marketing, this study endeavors to juxtapose relevant EU directives with Turkish legal frameworks, spotlighting discerned lacunae and proffering remedial recommendations. Keywords: Online, behavioral marketing, protection of personal data.