This article explores the interaction between emerging digital technologies − particularly blockchain and artificial intelligence − and European Union law in the field of personal data protection. The research applies methods of legal analysis of EU legal norms and comparative law (notably in the context of Council of Europe practices and other jurisdictions). Particular attention is paid to the legal and ethical challenges posed by the immutability of blockchain records, the absence of a centralized data controller, and the use of automated decision-making without human involvement. The study assesses how current regulations − especially the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act) − enable the realization of the fundamental right to privacy in the context of digital transformation. Drawing on case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), positions of the European Data Protection Board (EDPB), and national supervisory practice, the article substantiates the need to adapt legal mechanisms to the specificities of decentralized and high-risk systems. It proposes ways to improve legal regulation through a combination of technological and normative tools, including the implementation of Privacy by Design principles and interdisciplinary ethical compliance (a system of measures, rules, and procedures aimed at ensuring that an organization’s activities conform to established legal and ethical standards). The conclusion emphasizes the need to reconceptualize digital human rights as a complex category encompassing not only legal safeguards but also democratic oversight of algorithms and technological transparency. Ultimately, it is underscored that human beings − as bearers of rights and autonomous dignity − must remain at the center of the digital legal order, not merely as objects of data processing.
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