data retention
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EU PNR: Unproven, ineffective strategies are not security
“When people are scared, they need something done that will make them feel safe, even if it doesn’t truly make them safer. Politicians naturally want to do something in response to crisis, even if that something doesn’t make any sense.” Bruce Schneier, Security expert The proposal for a EU PNR Directive (Fight against terrorism and […]
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EU Parliament to vote on indiscriminate collection and storage of travel data on 15 July
Two years after rejecting the Commission proposal for a Directive on Passenger Name Record (PNR) in April 2013, the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) is expected to vote again on the adoption of this blanket surveillance measure on 15 July. The purpose of the Directive is to collect and store the […]
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European Digital Rights asks the European Commission to investigate illegal data retention laws in the EU
European Digital Rights (EDRi) this morning sent a letter to European Commission First Vice-President Frans Timmermans, asking the European Commission to investigate the data retention laws in EU Member States which appear to be illegal in light of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruling on this issue from 8 April last […]
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Belgian Constitutional Court rules against data retention
On 12 June, following two actions for annulment brought independently, the Belgian Constitutional Court ruled against the mass collection of communications metadata. This ruling is line with a recent ruling from the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) invalidating the directive that inspired the Belgian law. The Data Retention Directive (2006/24/CE) adopted in […]
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Surveillance of air passengers: Letter to Parliamentarians
Today, 4 June, in light of the discussion in the European Parliament Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) of the amendments for the Passenger Name Record (PNR) proposal, we have sent the following e-mail to all members in the Committee: “Dear Ms/Mr ……, Ahead of today’s debate on the proposed EU-PNR Directive, EDRi […]
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Data retention: German government tries again
Even before the parliamentary summer recess starting on 4 July, the German government wants to push a national law on data retention through the German Bundestag. After the Ministry of Justice presented so-called guidelines in mid-April, and a complete draft law only a month later, the Parliament is now supposed to debate and pass this […]
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Slovakia: Mass surveillance of citizens is unconstitutional
Slovakia’s data retention law is now history. On 29 April, the Constitutional Court of the Slovak Republic ruled that the mass surveillance of citizens is unconstitutional. The decision was made in the context of proceedings initiated by 30 Members of the Parliament on behalf of the European Information Society Institute (EISi), a Slovakia-based think-tank. In […]
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Hungarian data retention case: ORG, PI & scholars file amicus briefs
EDRi member Open Rights Group (ORG), Privacy International and a group of internationally acknowledged experts filed amicus curiae briefs with the Hungarian Constitutional Court. The case has been brought by the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union (HCLU) against two major service providers, in an attempt to force the Hungarian Constitutional Court to repeal the Hungarian Electronic […]
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Denmark plans to preserve illegally collected medical data
In Denmark, a controversial plan to prevent illegally collected medical data from being deleted has become a hot topic for the government. The plan involves transferring the data to the National Archives, which has an exemption in the Danish data protection act. Under the Danish health care act, general practitioners can transfer medical data to […]
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In Germany, Data Retention refuses to die
The debate is intensifying in Germany on whether telecommunications data retention should be reintroduced. At the centre of the controversy is Sigmar Gabriel, the leader of the Social Democrats (SPD, the smaller party in Germany’s “grand coalition” government since 2013), and consequently a government minister for the economy and chancellor Angela Merkel’s deputy. Gabriel’s role […]
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Dutch data retention law struck down – for now
Published originally by EDRi-member Bits of Freedom And then everything went BANG: from our Twitter-timeline to the champagne bottle at our office. This morning the court annulled the data retention law. Effective immediately. But what exactly did the judge say and what will happen now? The data-retention law requires telecom providers to save communication- and […]
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Did GCHQ spy on you? Find out now!
Since its launch on 16 February 2015, over 25 000 people have joined an international campaign to try to learn whether Britain’s intelligence agency, GCHQ, illegally spied on them. This opportunity is possible thanks to court victory in the Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT), a secret court set up to hear complaints against the British Security […]
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