October 4, 2022 · Blogs | Open internet and inclusive technology | Artificial intelligence (AI) | Surveillance and data retention

“Take it personal, and don´t”: changing the decolonising process and letting ourselves be changed

This blog reviews the decolonising process so far and what we've been upto since our last communication, shared in December last year. It adds detail to how we are organising, shifting, and re-orienting the iterative and complex needs of a decolonising process.

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December 1, 2021 · Blogs | On the ground | Privacy and data protection | Privacy and confidentiality | Surveillance and data retention

Algorithmic persecution based on massive privacy violations used to justify human rights abuses, says new report

More than 13,000 Turkish military personnel have been dismissed since July 2016 on the basis of an algorithm used by the authorities to assess the alleged “terrorist” credentials or connections of military officers and their relatives in violation of multiple human rights, says a new report published today by Statewatch.

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May 28, 2025 · Blogs | Privacy and data protection | Equal access to the internet | Privacy and confidentiality | Surveillance and data retention

Sweden further cracks down on sex workers: What it means for digital rights

Despite overwhelming opposition from civil society, academic experts, and sex workers, the Swedish Parliament voted to adopt a law that expand the criminalisation of sex work. This will have have a chilling effect nationally and internationally, and affect digital rights.

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November 14, 2019 · Blogs | Privacy and data protection | Cross border access to data | Surveillance and data retention

“E-evidence”: Repairing the unrepairable

On 11 November 2019, Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Birgit Sippel (S&D), Rapporteur for the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) presented her draft Report, attempting to fix the many flaws of the European Commission’s “e-evidence” proposal. Has Sippel MEP been successful at repairing the unrepairable? The initial e-evidence proposal by […]

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November 10, 2021 · Blogs | Highlights | Open internet and inclusive technology | Artificial intelligence (AI) | Surveillance and data retention

Artificial intelligence – a tool of austerity

This week Human Rights Watch published a much-needed comment on the EU’s Artificial Intelligence Regulation. As governments increasingly resort to AI systems to administer social security and public services more broadly, there is an ever-greater need to analyse the impact on fundamental rights and the broader public interest.

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May 4, 2016 · Blogs | Privacy and data protection | Privacy and confidentiality | Surveillance and data retention

Dutch dragnet surveillance bill leaked

On 29 April, the final text for the Dutch dragnet surveillance bill was leaked. It turns out that Minister of the Dutch Interior Ronald Plasterk is still bent on granting the secret services the power to carry out bulk interception of innocent citizens’ communications.

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December 9, 2020 · Blogs | Highlights | Privacy and data protection | Artificial intelligence (AI) | Biometrics | Privacy and confidentiality | Surveillance and data retention

Reclaiming faces and public spaces!

The Reclaim Your Face movement is growing, and our demands for transparency, limiting the accepted uses and respect for humans are becoming more and more common across Europe. New organisations are joining the coalition each week, and people across Europe continue to sign the petition to add their voices to our demands. Now, thanks to campaigning by Homo Digitalis in Greece and Bits of Freedom in the Netherlands, we’re getting closer to real political and legislative changes that will protect our faces and our public spaces from biometric mass surveillance.

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June 1, 2021 · Blogs | Information democracy | Artificial intelligence (AI) | Biometrics | Surveillance and data retention

From ‘trustworthy AI’ to curtailing harmful uses: EDRi’s impact on the proposed EU AI Act

Civil society has been the underdog in the European Union's (EU) negotiations on the artificial intelligence (AI) regulation. The goal of the regulation has been to create the conditions for AI to be developed and deployed across Europe, so any shift towards prioritising people’s safety, dignity and rights feels like a great achievement. Whilst a lot needs to happen to make this shift a reality in the final text, EDRi takes stock of it’s impact on the proposed Artificial Intelligence Act (AIA). EDRi and partners mobilised beyond organisations traditionally following digital initiatives managing to establish that some uses of AI are simply unacceptable. 

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July 20, 2023 · Blogs | Privacy and data protection | Surveillance and data retention

LIBE Committee’s opinion fails to include a total ban on the use of spyware in the European Media Freedom Act

EU Parliament's LIBE committee voted on its position on the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) and failed to call for a total ban on the use of spyware against journalists.

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September 8, 2021 · Highlights | Open letters | Privacy and data protection | Biometrics | Surveillance and data retention

Intensified surveillance at EU borders: EURODAC reform needs a radical policy shift

In an open letter addressed to the European Parliament Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs Committee, 34 organisations protecting the rights of people on the move, children and digital rights including European Digital Rights (EDRi) urge policymakers to radically change the direction of the EURODAC reform – the European Union (EU) database storing asylum seekers’ and migrants’ personal data - in order to respect fundamental rights and international law. 

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March 7, 2023 · Blogs | Highlights | Press releases | Privacy and data protection | Data protection standards | Surveillance and data retention

Poll: Young people in 13 EU countries refuse surveillance of online communication – Press Release

According to the results of the survey, 80% of young people aged 13 to 17 years old from 13 EU Member States would not feel comfortable being politically active or exploring their sexuality if authorities were able to monitor their digital communication, in order to look for child sexual abuse.

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November 25, 2019 · Blogs | Privacy and data protection | Data protection standards | Surveillance and data retention

New Protocol on cybercrime: cutting red tape ≠ cutting human rights safeguards

From 20 to 22 November 2019, European Digital Rights (EDRi) and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) took part in the Octopus Conference 2019 at the Council of Europe (CoE) to present the comments submitted by EFF, EDRi, IT-Pol Denmark and the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) on draft provisions of the Second Additional Protocol to […]

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