The Iberoamerican Data Protection Network (RIPD) was created following the agreement reached at the Iberoamerican Data Protection Meeting held in La Antigua, Guatemala, in June 2003, with the participation of representatives from 14 Iberoamerican countries. The Network serves as an integrating forum that promotes the exchange of information, experiences, and knowledge among Iberoamerican countries in the field of personal data protection, fostering dialogue and cooperation between public and private actors. It is currently composed of 16 data protection authorities and 18 observer organizations, including the Organization of American States (OAS), the European Data Protection Supervisor, the Council of Europe, and recently the OECD, the World Bank Group, and Georgia's Personal Data Protection Service.

Colombia has been an active member of the Network since its origins, participating in the 2nd Iberoamerican Data Protection Meeting in La Antigua (2003), which laid the foundations for the creation of the RIPD, and serving as host country of the Iberoamerican Meeting on multiple occasions, including 2004, 2008, 2013, and most recently the XXII Iberoamerican Meeting on Data Protection held in Cartagena de Indias in 2025. In 2017, during the XV Iberoamerican Meeting, Colombia took part in the approval of the Personal Data Protection Standards for Iberoamerican States, a key reference instrument aligned with international frameworks such as the European GDPR, the OECD Guidelines, and Council of Europe Convention 108.

Colombia served as President of the RIPD through the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce, leading initiatives such as the development of a guide of general recommendations for data processing in Artificial Intelligence. Following the XXII Meeting in Cartagena (2025), the Presidency was assumed by the National Data Protection Authority of Brazil, and Colombia now integrates the Executive Committee for the 2025–2027 term, alongside Argentina, Peru, and Uruguay.

Current priorities of the Network:

During the XXII Meeting in Cartagena, the RIPD approved its Strategic Plan 2026–2030, which sets new priorities including the intersection between artificial intelligence and data protection, data spaces, biometric processing, neurorights and neurotechnologies, and the protection of vulnerable groups. The Network also agreed to update the Iberoamerican Data Protection Standards, with a view to their adoption at the Iberoamerican Summit of Heads of State and Government to be held in Madrid in the second half of 2026, and announced the creation of the Iberoamerican Observatory on Data Protection, a tool for analysis and foresight on emerging regulatory challenges in the digital environment.

Upcoming Annual Meeting 2026:

Colombia will once again serve as host country for the XXIII Annual Meeting of the RIPD, to be held from May 26 to 28, 2026, in Cartagena de Indias in a hybrid format. The meeting will bring together data protection authorities from across the region, along with observers and collaborators, to advance the priorities set out in the Strategic Plan 2026–2030 and the work of the Network's working groups, including those on the Declaration against Digital Violence towards Women and Girls and the Recommendations on Personal Data Processing in Cloud Computing Services