Digital rights of inmates: access to information and protection of personal data in penitentiary institutions

The subject of the research is a comprehensive analysis of the implementation of digital rights of convicts in the institutions of the penal enforcement system of the Russian Federation, primarily the right to access information and the right to personal data protection. The work examines the existing legal regulation at both the international and national levels, including the contradiction between constitutional guarantees and departmental prohibitions (Article 29 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation and Article 82 of the Penal Enforcement Code of the Russian Federation). The study explores practical mechanisms for ensuring access of convicts to legal resources, educational platforms, and communication services, as well as the specifics of processing their personal data in a penitentiary institution. Particular attention is paid to the balance between the need to ensure security and the observance of the rights of convicts in the digital domain, the risks associated with communication monitoring, video surveillance, and data storage, and the search for ways to harmonize these interests. The research employs general scientific methods (analysis, synthesis, generalization) and specialized methods: formal-legal, comparative-legal, analysis of law enforcement practice and documents, as well as the method of comparative law in studying foreign experience. The scientific novelty of the work lies in the systemic study of the digital rights of convicts as a complex issue situated at the intersection of penal enforcement law, information law, and personal data protection law. A key finding is formulated regarding the presence of systemic problems: deep contradictions between the declared rights and real prohibitions, technological backwardness of infrastructure, insufficient regulatory framework for data processing, and uncertainty in the boundaries of control. The research confirms that ensuring digital rights is not only a legal imperative but also a tool for resocialization. As promising areas for improvement, a set of measures is proposed, including the development of a special departmental regulatory framework, technical modernization of the IT infrastructure using data anonymization, the introduction of the institution of a responsible person, the implementation of educational programs for staff and convicts, as well as the creation of effective mechanisms for judicial and administrative protection of violated rights.