Berlin: German researchers concluded in a recent study that lowering data protection standards is not an appropriate means of developing Europe's competitive capacity in the digital economy, calling instead for combining innovation promotion with data protection and digital sovereignty.

According to Qatar News Agency, the study, prepared by the Privacy Platform, overseen by the Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research in collaboration with the University of Kassel, clarified that available empirical evidence does not support the assumption that reducing data protection necessarily leads to greater innovation.

The researchers emphasized that the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) cannot be considered a general barrier to innovation, while noting at the same time that its impact varies depending on sectors, company sizes, and types of innovation.

They pointed out that small and startup companies face greater bureaucratic and regulatory burdens, as well as instances of legal uncertainty, whereas large companies possess greater resources to manage regulatory requirements.

They called for easing the burden on small and medium-sized enterprises according to a risk-based approach, promoting the use of privacy-enhancing technologies, expanding regulatory sandbox laboratories, and providing greater legal certainty for scientific research.

In the field of artificial intelligence and data-driven innovations, the study stressed that company success does not depend solely on possessing large quantities of data, but rather on its quality, exclusivity, and the ability to use it effectively, noting that efficient artificial intelligence techniques in data usage can contribute to combining innovation with privacy protection.

The researchers warned against placing fundamental rights protection and innovation in opposition to each other, considering that data protection, information technology security, and digital sovereignty can constitute key elements in an independent European model of innovation.

They emphasized that promoting Europe's competitive capacity against the United States and China does not require abandoning protection standards, but rather simplifying procedures, harmonizing rules, and reducing burdens on small and medium-sized enterprises while maintaining the level of protection.