Insurtech and Protection of the Person in the Processing of Genetic Data

The article examines the relationship between insurance and the processing of genetic data, with particular reference to the insurtech context, namely situations in which the data subject’s genetic profile is delineated through artificial intelligence systems. Building on the distinctive features of genetic data and the specific legal provisions governing their processing, it argues that such data require enhanced protection, inter alia to prevent discriminatory outcomes. This leads to the conclusion − also in light of the rules on oncological oblivion and of the EU Regulation on the European Health Data Space (EHDS) − that insurance undertakings may not lawfully require the disclosure of such information. Moreover, within the same regulatory framework, the article contends that insurers may not lawfully infer the data subject’s genetic profile through artificial intelligence and algorithmic Big Data processing for the purposes of assessing the insurable risk and, accordingly, shaping contractual terms.