The Council of Europe’s Convention 108 opened for signature on January 28, 1981. The Council describes it as the first legally binding international instrument in the field of data protection. It concerns protection of people in relation to personal-data processing, not a newly signed Paris treaty creating a global digital-rights court. Convention 108 overview
The convention requires parties to adopt domestic measures protecting fundamental rights in the processing of personal data. Its history also includes an additional protocol opened for signature in 2001 addressing supervisory authorities and cross-border data flows. These are specific treaty developments with their own legal texts and timelines.
The Council describes a modernized version known as Convention 108+. A modernization process should not be confused with an unrelated instrument simply because both address privacy or digital technology. Legal obligations depend on the actual instrument and the state’s participation.
The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights separately publishes analysis of privacy in the digital age. A UN thematic report and a Council of Europe treaty have different institutional origins and functions. Combining them into an invented convention would misrepresent both. UN privacy report
Archive note: the earlier Paris signing, signatories, court and treaty provisions were not substantiated.