Yes, web scraping is legal in Finland when it complies with EU and Finnish data protection, copyright, and contract laws. Publicly available data may be scraped unless restricted by terms of service or personal data protections under GDPR. The Finnish Data Protection Ombudsman (Tietosuojavaltuutettu) enforces compliance with the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), while the Finnish Competition and Consumer Authority (Kilpailu- ja kuluttajavirasto) monitors unfair commercial practices.
Key Regulations for Web Scraping in Finland
- GDPR Compliance: Scraping personal data requires a lawful basis (e.g., consent, legitimate interest) and adherence to principles like data minimization. The Finnish Supervisory Authority (Tietosuojavaltuutettu) has fined entities for improper personal data collection via scraping.
- Copyright Law (Tekijänoikeuslaki): Extracting copyrighted content without permission violates the Finnish Copyright Act. Exceptions exist for temporary copies or transformative use, but systematic scraping may trigger infringement claims.
- Terms of Service & Contracts: Violating website terms (e.g., prohibiting automated access) may constitute a breach of contract. Finnish courts have upheld such restrictions, particularly for commercial scraping.
Finnish jurisprudence increasingly aligns with the EU’s 2026 Digital Services Act (DSA), which imposes stricter transparency obligations on large platforms. Scrapers must document data sources, purposes, and retention periods to mitigate enforcement risks. Finnish courts also consider the fair use doctrine, but commercial scraping of non-public data remains high-risk.