The date was set up in 2006 in the Council of Europe and was chosen to be on 28 January since it was on that date that, in 1981, the Council of Europe Convention 108 was established.

This Convention concerns the protection of citizens with regard to the automatic processing of personal data.

Every year, actions are promoted for the dissemination of means and good practices for data protection. This day aims to make citizens aware of the posture they must have to protect their privacy.

Taking advantage of the date, technology giants like Google and Microsoft have shared more information about how they use the personal data of users of their services.

The International Data Privacy Day is a celebration of the dignity of the individual, expressed in personal information.