Our work
EDRi is the biggest European network defending rights and freedoms online. We work to to challenge private and state actors who abuse their power to control or manipulate the public. We do so by advocating for robust and enforced laws, informing and mobilising people, promoting a healthy and accountable technology market, and building a movement of organisations and individuals committed to digital rights and freedoms in a connected world.
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Slovenian Intelligence Agency performed illegal eavesdropping
The Slovenian constitutional court issued a decision on 8 December 2005 ascertaining that, in 1996, SOVA (Slovenian intelligence agency) illegally performed eavesdropping to a suspected person later sentenced for unjustified production and trading of drugs. The most aggravating evidences for the defendant were the telephone conversation recordings that SOVA made for the police. The eavesdropping […]
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Big Brother Award for Dutch immigration minister
Dutch Minister Rita Verdonk for Integration and Immigration won a negative Big Brother Award during the Dutch awards ceremony on 28 January 2006 in De Melkweg in Amsterdam. Minister Verdonk was awarded the price for having handed-over the status of asylum seeker of rejected applicants to their country of origin, for having denied it repeatedly […]
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UK Passenger Travel Data in Advance
Security services and the police in UK will have a new power. According to the immigration bill going through the Parliament, airlines will have to give them advanced access to personal online details of all passengers travelling in and out Great Britain. The home secretary, Charles Clarke announced the intention to extend the system to […]
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Recommended reading: Security Policies in Europe
Current trends in ICT-based public security policies in Europe show a systematic, generalized and global use of control and surveillance technologies. This leads to implementing irreversible technical standards, to long term structuring of an economic sector, to durably established social behaviours, as well as, more globally, to questioning fundamental aspects of the rule of law. […]
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EDRI-gram saved!
The campaign for support for EDRI-gram has been very successful. After an urgency call for pledges in the last 2005 issue of EDRI-gram, kind donators have pledged a little over 2.000 euro in support. On top of that, the Open Society Institute (Soros) kindly offered a donation of 1.500 euro. Combined with the 4.000 euro […]
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Comparison between US and European anti-terror policies
In a report titled ” Threatening the Open Society: Comparing Anti-terror Policies and Strategies in the U.S. and Europe” and released on 13 December 2005, Privacy International compared the anti-terrorism approaches in the U.S. with those in Europe. The report finds that on every policy involving mass surveillance of its citizens, the EU is prepared […]
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Evaluation of EU rules on databases
The Directive on the legal protection of Databases was adopted in February 1996. The Directive created a new exclusive ‘sui generis’ right for database producers, valid for 15 years, to protect their investment of time, money and effort, irrespective of whether the database is in itself innovative (“non-original” databases). The European Commission published on 12 […]
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BEUC's Campaign on Consumers' Digital Rights
In November 2005 BEUC (the coalition of all consumers’ organisations in Europe) has launched a Campaign on Consumers’ Digital Rights. The campaign is meant to show consumers what their digital rights are. BEUC is supported by Zusana Roithova, Member of the European Parliament, Czech Republic. The campaign highlights the complex threats for consumers in today’s […]
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UK ID card scheme – defeated in the House of Lords
On 17 January 2006, a full House of Lords debated at length the purposes, costs, and details of the proposed identity cards scheme. And in three votes serious obstacles were raised against the Government. The Government contends that the card is essential for combating crime, illegal immigration, and identity theft, and can be achieved for […]
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NL Supreme court ends 10 year old Scientology case
Freedom of speech won in a battle that lasted for a decade between Karin Spaink, a Dutch writer and XS4ALL, her Internet service provider, on one side, and the Church of Scientology, on the other side, which was claiming copyright infringement. It all began in 1995 when the Church of Scientology attempted to seize the […]
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Freedom of Information Act in Macedonia
The Civil Society in Macedonia is very much concerned about the quality of the proposed draft Law on Free Access to Information of Public Character as it does not meet international standards on access to information. Today (18.01.2006), it is expected that the Macedonian Parliament will adopt the Law. Nongovernmental organizations Article 19, Foundation Open […]
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First Consultations on Establishment of Internet Governance Forum
Following the agenda of the WSIS (World Summit on the Information Society) in Tunis in November 2005, the stakeholders will attend a meeting in Geneva, on 16 and 17 February for consultations regarding the convening of an IGF ( Internet Governance Forum) for multi-stakeholder policy dialogue. The meeting in Geneva is meant to deal with […]
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