Ley 1581 de 2012, Sensitive Categories and Children's Data

Ley 1581 de 2012, arts. 5-7 (Datos Sensibles y Menores)

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In force since 17 October 2012.

A sensitive categories rule binding public and private bodies.

As of 19 September 2026.

What it requires

Before processing sensitive personal data, including data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinion, religious or philosophical belief, union or human rights organization membership, health, sexual life, or biometric data, obtain the data subject's explicit authorization; processing sensitive personal data is otherwise prohibited.
Process sensitive personal data without the data subject's explicit authorization only where it protects the data subject's vital interest and they cannot consent, where a not for profit political, philosophical, religious or union body processes it about its own members without disclosing it to third parties, where it is needed to establish, exercise or defend a right in a judicial proceeding, or where it serves a historical, statistical or scientific purpose and the data subject's identity is suppressed.
Do not process a child's or adolescent's personal data unless it is data of a public nature, and provide children, adolescents and their guardians with information and training on the risks of improper processing and on the safe, responsible use of their personal data.

What it reaches

Obligation class

Prohibition, Consent, Biometric, Age verification

What this law does

Drafted with AI from the cited sources under the direction of UnGovr staff. UnGovr holds editorial responsibility for this page.

Article 5 defines sensitive data as data that affects a person's privacy or whose misuse can generate discrimination, expressly naming racial or ethnic origin, political opinion, religious or philosophical belief, union or human rights organization membership, health, sexual life, and biometric data.

Article 6 prohibits processing sensitive data unless the data subject gives explicit authorization, the processing protects the data subject's vital interest and they cannot consent, a not for profit political, philosophical, religious or union body processes it about its own members without disclosing it to third parties, the processing establishes, exercises or defends a right in a judicial proceeding, or the processing serves a historical, statistical or scientific purpose and suppresses the data subject's identity.

Article 7 bars processing a child's or adolescent's personal data unless the data is of a public nature, and assigns the State and educational entities the task of informing and training legal representatives, guardians, children and adolescents about the risks of improper processing and the safe, responsible use of their personal data.

When LexLint raises it

crawls_web
trains_models
processes_biometrics
processes_voice
serves_minors
handles_health_records

Read the law

Official consolidated text, Gestor Normativo, Departamento Administrativo de la Funcion Publica

Every line above is drawn from the primary source linked here, read on the date shown. This is a research summary, not legal advice.

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