What is LIA (legitimate interest assessment)?

Definition

LIA is an abbreviation for Legitimate Interest AssessmentThe assessment (or test) of legitimate interest. It is the document in which the controller demonstrates that it can process personal data based on legitimate interest, one of the legal bases in Article 7 of the LGPD, and that struck a balance between its interests and the rights and expectations of the data subject.

What does the LGPD require?

Article 10 of the LGPD (Brazilian General Data Protection Law) allows legitimate interest only for legitimate purposes, considered from concrete situations, and requires that only strictly necessary data be processed, that the controller adopt transparency measures, and that the authority may request an impact assessment report when the processing is based on this hypothesis. The ANPD (National Data Protection Authority) published a guidance document on the application of legitimate interest, with a step-by-step test.

The stages of the test

1. Purpose: Is the interest legitimate, concrete, and lawful? What is the benefit for the controller or for third parties?
2. Need: Is treatment really necessary for this purpose? Is there a less invasive option?
3. Balancing: What are the impacts on the data subject and their legitimate expectations? Do the controller's interests prevail?
4. Safeguards: What transparency, minimization, and security measures reduce the impact? Can the data subject object?

Why document?

Legitimate interest is the most flexible legal basis and, therefore, the one that demands the most accountability. The documented written test is evidence that the decision was well-founded and should be reviewed when the purpose or context changes. The result feeds into the... ROPA and, in cases of risk, the RIPD.

How Privacy Tools register the test

in the module Data MappingEach processing activity indicates the legal basis; when it is legitimate interest, the platform stores the proportionality test along with the activity, including the responses to the steps and the individuals responsible for the evaluation.

Related terms

ROPA · RIPD · DSAR · Back to glossary

Updated October 3th, 2026.