explain article 9 of the GDPR

Article 9 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) pertains to the processing of special categories of personal data. These special categories are considered sensitive and include data that, if misused, could lead to significant risks to a person's rights and freedoms. **Key points of Article 9 include:** 1. **Definition of Special Categories**: Article 9 identifies specific types of data as "special categories," which include: - Racial or ethnic origin - Political opinions - Religious or philosophical beliefs - Trade union membership - Genetic data - Biometric data (for the purpose of uniquely identifying an individual) - Health data - Data concerning a person's sex life or sexual orientation 2. **Prohibition of Processing**: The general rule under Article 9 is that processing these special categories of data is prohibited unless certain conditions are met. 3. **Conditions for Processing**: The article outlines specific conditions under which the processing of special category data is permissible. These include, but are not limited to: - The data subject has given explicit consent to the processing for one or more specified purposes. - Processing is necessary for carrying out obligations and exercising specific rights in the field of employment and social security law. - Processing is necessary to protect the vital interests of the data subject or another person where the data subject is physically or legally incapable of giving consent. - Processing is carried out in the course of legitimate activities by a foundation, association, or any other not-for-profit body. - Processing relates to personal data that are manifestly made public by the data subject. - Processing is necessary for the establishment, exercise, or defense of legal claims or whenever courts are acting in their judicial capacity. - Processing is necessary for reasons of substantial public interest, based on Union or Member State law. - Processing is necessary for preventive or occupational medicine or for the assessment of the working capacity of an employee. - Processing is necessary for reasons of public health. - Processing is necessary for archiving purposes in the public interest, scientific or historical research purposes, or statistical purposes. 4. **Additional Safeguards**: Even when one of the above conditions applies, organizations must ensure that they implement appropriate safeguards to protect the rights and freedoms of data subjects. 5. **Explicit Consent**: When consent is the basis for processing special category data, the consent must be explicit, meaning that the data subject must provide clear affirmative action indicating their agreement. In summary, Article 9 of the GDPR establishes stringent rules and conditions for the processing of sensitive personal data to protect individuals' privacy and ensure their rights in the context of data protection. Organizations handling such data must be especially diligent and transparent about their processing activities.