What Is a DPO, and Why Educational Institutions Need One
Updated: Nov 26, 2025
In recent years, schools and educational institutions have increasingly adopted digital platforms, communication systems, and cloud services. Along with the many advantages, this shift also brings significant responsibility: protecting the personal information of students, parents, and staff. Under updated Israeli regulations, institutions that hold sensitive or large-scale data are legally required to appoint a Data Protection Officer (DPO).
What is a DPO?
A Data Protection Officer is an independent professional responsible for ensuring that an institution complies with privacy laws, manages personal information properly, and protects it from breaches, misuse, or poor handling.
By law, the DPO must be completely independent and free of conflicts of interest. This means the DPO cannot come from the IT department, cannot be a system administrator, and cannot be anyone involved in day-to-day data management or operational decision-making about the institution’s databases.
What does a DPO actually do?
Reviews procedures and data-handling practices
Conducts or supervises risk assessments
Trains staff members
Communicates with the Israeli Privacy Protection Authority
Provides ongoing oversight to prevent mistakes and incidents
Why must schools choose an external DPO?
The role requires both legal and technical expertise, as well as full independence. In practice, it’s nearly impossible to add these responsibilities to an existing position — especially not to someone within the IT infrastructure, who is automatically considered to have a conflict of interest.
An external DPO provides:
Professional expertise
Full independence with no conflicts of interest
Consistent, ongoing support
Work methods aligned with legal standards and best practices
What happens if there is no DPO?
According to the law, an institution that is required to appoint a DPO and fails to do so is in direct violation, exposing itself to significant risk:
Fines and enforcement actions by the Privacy Protection Authority
Security gaps and improper data management
Preventable mistakes and data-handling errors
Loss of parent trust and damage to the institution’s reputation
Legal exposure in the event of a data breach
Disruption to daily operations during an incident
Real-world examples of fines and lawsuits
To understand the actual risk, here are some realistic examples:
1. Administrative fines
For security violations, data breaches, or failing to appoint a DPO:
Fines can range from ₪50,000 to ₪150,000, and sometimes more.
2. Lawsuits from parents or staff - even without proof of damage
Under Israeli case law, individuals can sue for privacy violations without needing to prove any actual harm, which significantly increases the risk for schools.
Examples:
A single parent’s claim: ₪10,000–₪30,000
A widespread breach (e.g., exposure of 100 students): a class-action lawsuit that may reach hundreds of thousands of shekels or more
3. Incident-handling costs
Even without fines or lawsuits:
Investigations, legal counsel, and cybersecurity services: ₪20,000–₪70,000
Complex incidents can exceed ₪100,000
In summary
Appointing a DPO is not a formality — it is a critical legal requirement that protects educational institutions from financial, legal, and reputational harm. A professional, independent DPO ensures that sensitive student and staff information is managed responsibly, securely, and in full compliance with the law.
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