CONSENTIMIENTO VICIADO POR COACCIÓN IMPLÍCITA EN EL TRATAMIENTO DE DATOS BIOMÉTRICOS LABORALES

Abstract

This article examines the legal validity of consent provided by employees for the processing of their biometric data through fingerprint-based attendance control systems within Ecuadorian private enterprises, with the central purpose of demonstrating that implicit coercion derived from the employer's managerial authority structurally vitiates such consent, rendering it invalid as a lawful basis for processing under the Organic Law on Personal Data Protection (LOPDP), its Regulations (RLOPDP), and Article 66(19) of the Constitution of the Republic of Ecuador (CRE). The study adopts a sequential explanatory mixed-methods approach, combining dogmatic-analytical and comparative legal analysis with the administration of an eight-item structured survey using a knowledge-level scale to the ten academic mentors comprising the coastal region team of a private Ecuadorian editorial company; the instrument was validated through expert judgment and administered digitally via Google Forms. The normative analysis identifies a regulatory gap in the RLOPDP regarding biometric data processing in employment relationships and confirms, based on Official Letter N.° SPDP-IRD-2025-0031-O issued by the Superintendency of Personal Data Protection, that consent cannot constitute a valid lawful basis in contexts of labor subordination. Empirical findings reveal that 56% of participants are unaware of the rights available to them regarding biometric data processing, with unawareness rates reaching 70% in dimensions related to the defect of consent due to labor coercion and legal redress mechanisms.