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.
Filter resources
-
Big Brother Awards presented in Paris
On 4 February 2004 the French Big Brother Awards were presented in a movie theatre in Paris. In the category ‘Government’ a double award was given to the Ministers of Justice and Internal Affairs, Dominique Perben and Nicolas Sarkozy, for their joined efforts in changing the law on organised crime. The new adaptation (Perben II) […]
Read more
-
European Court underlines public access rights
The European Court of Justice in a recent judgement has underlined the rights to freedom of information. If a governmental document cannot be disclosed in full for reasons of public security or institutional confidentiality, it should at least be made available in part. To promote freedom of information and grant ‘the widest possible access’ to […]
Read more
-
Hungary signs cybercrime treaty
On 4 December 2003, Hungary became the fourth country (along with Albania, Croatia and Estonia) to ratify the Cybercrime Convention. Lithuania is the latest country to have signed the Convention (26 June 2003). All 15 EU states have already signed it. Hungary made an explicit reservation, reserving the right not to apply Article 9, paragraph […]
Read more
-
EU Commission heads for global travel surveillance system
The UK civil liberties group Privacy International, in co-operation with European Digital Rights, the Foundation for Information Policy Research and Statewatch, has published an analysis of the EU-US negotiations on the transfer on passenger information (PNR). The report titled ‘Transferring Privacy’ describes how the European Commission leaves European privacy rights at the mercy of the […]
Read more
-
Results OECD workshop on spam
During the OECD workshop on spam, held in Brussels on 2 and 3 February, the consumer unions of Europe and the USA (united in the Trans Atlantic Consumer Dialogue) presented the results of a survey amongst 21.102 consumers on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. 96 percent of the people said that either they hated […]
Read more
-
IFPI sues Belgian ISP over Usenet
The IFPI, the international representative of the recording industry, has instigated legal proceedings against the Belgian ISP Telenet for the unauthorised distribution of music via Usenet (newsgroups). Telenet refuses to block the access to certain newsgroups in its newsservice ‘Bommanews’. The ISP argues that providing Usenet services is a ‘mere conduit’ activity, and under the […]
Read more
-
Spy-chips discovered in German loyalty cards
After a tour in the Future Store of the German Metro concern, privacy advocate Katherine Albrecht discovered spy-chips with unique numbers in the customer loyalty cards. She also found RFID tags on products sold in the store that were not completely de-activated after the purchase. Albrecht, founder of CASPIAN (Consumers Against Supermarket Privacy Invasion and […]
Read more
-
More delay for IPR Enforcement and SoftPat Directives
The final vote on two of the most controversial information society Directives, the Directive on Software Patents and the Directive on the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights has been delayed once more. The IPRE directive was withdrawn last minute from the 9 February plenary agenda of the European Parliament. On 6 February the Council presented […]
Read more
-
Dutch police arrests 52 'Nigerian' spammers
In January, Dutch police have arrested 52 people suspected of large scale internet fraud with the infamous ‘Nigerian e-mail’ scam. The scammers sent spam e-mails asking for help in transferring a large sum of money out of their country (usually Nigeria), in exchange for a generous percentage. According to an AP news report, the gang […]
Read more
-
EP in favour of collecting societies and levies
On 15 January 2004 the European Parliament accepted an own-initiative report about the importance and future of collecting societies, the organisations that collect the rights on copyright and neighbouring rights. The report states that Digital Rights Management is insufficiently developed to replace the work of collecting societies. According to the report, reasonable levies (for example […]
Read more
-
Polish government allowed to send SMS-spam
According to a recent decision from the Polish Data Protection Authority (Generalny Inspektor Ochrony Danych Osobowych – GIODO) a massive SMS-spamrun from the Polish government was perfectly legal. A governmental agency committed this run in June 2003 as a last-minute reminder to citizens of the upcoming referendum about the European Union. Of the 30 million […]
Read more
-
Russian plans to introduce new ID-system
The Russian government is considering a new system of personal registration for all citizens. In 2006 all Russians will be assigned a unique universal identifier. On 15 January 2004 the deputy minister of economical development Andrei Sharonov told journalists that the original proposal had been prepared by his ministry and the government supported this idea. […]
Read more