Review article

https://doi.org/10.3935/zpfz.76.2.2

The Panopticon of Comfort: Reconceptualising Data Privacy in the Smart Home Era

Maja Mlakar orcid.org/0009-0000-9730-5676 ; University of Maribor, Faculty of Law, Maribor, Slovenia
Nataša Samec Berghaus orcid.org/0009-0001-2634-8238 ; University of Maribor, Faculty of Law, Maribor, Slovenia

Abstract

The article examines how smart-home technologies turn the home into a data-intensive environment in which comfort, security and automation depend on continuous data processing. It argues that GDPR application remains uncertain, especially regarding personal data, controllership among homeowners, device providers and cloud-service providers, and the household exemption. Corporate and cloud-based processing therefore require stronger transparency and accountability, while narrowly tailored domestic security measures should not be equated with large-scale surveillance. Self-protection, particularly to deter crime or preserve evidence concerning property and possession, should be recognised as a weighty legitimate interest, subject to least-intrusive safeguards protecting third parties.

Keywords

smart home; GDPR; consent; self-protection; controllership; household exemption

Hrčak ID:

349596

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/349596

Publication date:

21.7.2026.

Article data in other languages: croatian

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