---
title: "Recital 173 GDPR"
canonical: "https://dposchool.com/gdpr/recital/173"
source: "https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32016R0679#rct_173"
source_note: "Source: Regulation (EU) 2016/679, Official Journal L 119, 4.5.2016, as corrected. Only the text published in the Official Journal is authentic. © European Union, https://eur-lex.europa.eu"
text_as_of: "2026-10-28"
last_reviewed: "2026-10-29"
language: "en"
publisher: "DPO School"
---

Recitals

# Recital 173

Text as of 28 October 2026 · [Reviewed by Sergio Maldonado Elvira on 29 October 2026](https://dposchool.com/gdpr/about#review)

## Official text

This Regulation should apply to all matters concerning the protection of fundamental rights and freedoms vis-à-vis the processing of personal data which are not subject to specific obligations with the same objective set out in Directive 2002/58/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (18), including the obligations on the controller and the rights of natural persons. In order to clarify the relationship between this Regulation and Directive 2002/58/EC, that Directive should be amended accordingly. Once this Regulation is adopted, Directive 2002/58/EC should be reviewed in particular in order to ensure consistency with this Regulation,

## Notes in the Official Journal text

- (18) Directive 2002/58/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 July 2002 concerning the processing of personal data and the protection of privacy in the electronic communications sector (Directive on privacy and electronic communications) (OJ L 201, 31.7.2002, p. 37).

## Source

Source: Regulation (EU) 2016/679, Official Journal L 119, 4.5.2016, as corrected. Only the text published in the Official Journal is authentic. © European Union, https://eur-lex.europa.eu

[Recital 173 on EUR-Lex](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32016R0679#rct_173)

Text as of 28 October 2026.

This is reference material, not legal advice.

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