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observed, the term is widely defined, ensuring a wider scope for pro-
tection.
Art. 3 of the Draft Law defines personal data almost identically,
and the justification of this provision clarifies this definition by listing,
inter alia
, the name, surname, date and place of birth, information
regarding a person’s physical appearance, his/her familial, economic,
social and psychological properties, his/her social security number,
curriculum vitae, his/her image and sound recordings, and his/her
genetic data, IP address, e-mail address, hobbies, preferences, and
memberships. The medical data and religious and political beliefs of a
person can also be listed among those above-mentioned.
The Directive introduces a sub-category of personal data under
Art. 8 which is adapted into the Draft Law as Art. 6. Accordingly, eth-
nicity, origin, political, religious and philosophic views, union mem-
berships, information on health and sexual life are deemed as special
categories of personal data. The distinction is fortified by the fact that
such data are prohibited from being processed in both the Directive and
the Draft Law. Exceptions to this rule are indicated in their respective
provisions. Convention No. 108 also lists data pertaining to criminal
convictions as personal
5
.
The Scope of Protection
Although Turkey has yet to enact a law on the protection of per-
sonal data as foreseen by its Constitution, with the exception of E-
Commerce Law, the current protection relies on the Turkish
Constitution, Turkish Civil Code numbered 4721 and Turkish Criminal
Code numbered 5237. Art. 23 et seq. of the Turkish Civil Code regu-
lates the protection of the personal rights and the lawsuits to be filed to
this end. Moreover, Turkish Criminal Code Art. 135 criminalizes the
unlawful recording of any personal data, Art. 136 the illicit sharing or
obtainment of such data, and Art. 138, the failure to dispose of such data.
The protective measures included in the Draft Law and the
Directive are very similar. Firstly, Draft Law Art. 4 sets forth some
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5
Handbook on European Data Protection Law, European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights,
Council of Europe, 2014, p. 44.