August 25, 2010

ENDitorial: Leaked draft of the new Czech Copyright Act

This article is also available in: Deutsch: [ENDitorial: Entwurf zum neuen CR-Urheberrechtsgesetz durchgesickert | http://www.unwatched.org/node/2131] A leaked draft of the new Czech Copyright Act was obtained by Pirate News at the beginning of August 2010, after the Ministry of Culture has initially declined the request of Czech Pirate Party to have access to the document […]

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September 8, 2010

Deleting illegal sites is more efficient than blocking them

This article is also available in: Deutsch: [Löschen illegaler Seiten ist effizienter als Sperren | http://www.unwatched.org/node/2163] Eco, the Association of German Internet Economy, presented, in a press conference in Berlin on 1 September 2010, the situation related to fighting child pornography, reaching the conclusion that deleting was, in 98% of the cases, more efficient than […]

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September 8, 2010

France: Imminent "Humanitarian Fingerprinting" of Roma with OSCAR

This article is also available in: Deutsch: [Frankreich: Drohende Stigmatisierung von Roma durch OSCAR | http://www.unwatched.org/node/2164] The xenophobic anti-Roma campaign run by the French government following President Sarkozy’s discourse at the end of July has led to the brutal dismantling of numerous Roma camps, and to the expulsion of 1 000 foreign Roma people from […]

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September 8, 2010

INDECT – privacy ethics in a secret project

This article is also available in: Deutsch: [ INDECT – Datenschutzethik eines Geheimprojekts | http://www.unwatched.org/node/2165] A new document on ethical issues published by the INDECT European research project on public surveillance has once more attracted the scrutiny of the media. Previous allegations of secrecy were followed by an attempt to strengthen the project’s Ethics Board. […]

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September 8, 2010

Germany wants a new law to protect employees' privacy

This article is also available in: Deutsch: [Deutschland plant neues Gesetz zum Beschäftigtendatenschutz | http://www.unwatched.org/node/2166] Following several scandals during the last years related to the surveillance of employees in several companies, the German government has recently tabled a draft bill that would forbid employers to use hidden cameras or social networking websites to spy on […]

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September 8, 2010

State of play for ID cards in Europe

This article is also available in: Deutsch: [Personalausweise in Europa | http://www.unwatched.org/node/2167] A new analysis was made public by Statewatch based on the answers to a questionnaire regarding the “state of play concerning electronic identity cards” in the EU Member States and countries that are members of the so-called “Mixed Committee” that is part of […]

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September 8, 2010

YouTube guilty of its users' copyright infringement says a German court

This article is also available in: Deutsch: [Deutschland: YouTube wegen Verletzung von Urheberrechten verurteilt | http://www.unwatched.org/node/2168] On 3 September 2010, the German Hamburg state court ruled that Google’s subsidiary YouTube had to pay damages for not having prevented and blocked the upload by its users of several videos of Sarah Brightman’s performances, thus violating its […]

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September 8, 2010

UK: Harassing innocent users for copyright infringement

This article is also available in: Deutsch: [UK: Schuldlose User der Verletzung von Urheberrechten bezichtigt | http://www.unwatched.org/node/2169] ACS:Law having sent tens of thousands of cash demands to make supposed copyright infringement lawsuits go away, has been referred to the Solicitors Disciplinary Group for “bullying and excessive conduct”. The referral was the result of a coordinated […]

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September 22, 2010

Freedom not Fear 2010 – Stop Surveillance Mania!

This article is also available in: Deutsch: [Freiheit statt Angst – Stoppt den Überwachungswahn! | http://www.unwatched.org/node/2197] For the fourth consecutive time, this year the International Action Day took place on 11 September under the motto “Freedom not Fear 2010 – Stop Surveillance Mania”. The events that took place in several European towns such as Berlin, […]

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September 22, 2010

Dutch internet community protests against censorship proposal

This article is also available in: Deutsch: [Niederländische Internet-Gemeinschaft protestiert gegen staatliche Zensur-Pläne | http://www.unwatched.org/node/2198] Dutch civil society, companies, academics and bloggers sent a letter on 15 September 2010 to the Dutch Minister of Justice regarding a recently launched legislative proposal. According to the writers, the proposal could lead to censorship by the government. The […]

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September 22, 2010

European Commission's strategy for Data Protection Directive

This article is also available in: Deutsch: [ Datenschutz-Richtlinie: Die Strategie der Europäischen Kommission | http://www.unwatched.org/node/2199] During the Conference organised on 16 September 2010 by the Lisbon Council Brussels on “Unleashing the digital single market”, Vivane Reding, vice-president of the European Commission and Commissioner for justice, fundamental rights and citizenship, announced, among other things, she […]

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September 22, 2010

Blocking websites approved by the French Senate

This article is also available in: Deutsch: [Französischer Senat stimmt Netzsperren zu | http://www.unwatched.org/node/2200] The French Senate adopted on 10 September 2010 the law on known as Loppsi 2 (Original title: loi d’orientation et de programmation pour la performance de la sécurité intérieure). This legislation would give the police the power to upload malware on […]

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