FORMAL ANSWER

An external personal data storage medium is a mobile physical object on which information containing personal data can be recorded and from which that information can later be reproduced.

PRACTICAL ANSWER

In practice, the most common personal data storage media are: paper, hard drives, memory cards, USB drives, laptops, CD/DVD discs, mobile phones, magnetic and chip cards. What makes a medium “external” is its mobility, i.e. the ease with which it can be moved. A company server that fills an entire room is not mobile. The mobility of a desktop computer is also quite limited.

MORE:

• You can find more information in the guide: How to process personal data