Telecommunication data retention
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UK supermarket Tesco sells personal data
The Guardian reports about a new daughter-company of the UK Supermarket chain Tesco, that is selling very detailed information about every household and every person in the UK to the highest bidder. The database called Crucible contains “A map of personality, travel habits, shopping preferences and even how charitable and eco-friendly you are.” And even […]
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New Dutch database to create lifetime record for every baby
The Dutch ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport plans to introduce a new electronic file on every new-born, starting in January 2007. The file will contain information about the child, the family situation and its surroundings, later adding educational data, information from social workers and possible police records. The file will be principally maintained by […]
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Data Protection Commissioners Conference in Montreux
The 27th international conference of data protection commissioners took place in Montreux/Switzerland from 13 to 15 September 2005. The meeting with the title “The protection of personal data and privacy in a globalised world: A universal right respecting diversities” saw several hundred data protection authorities (DPA) officials, industry, cyberrights groups and other stake-holders for three […]
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Human rights in the information society on CoE agenda
On 12 and 13 September the Council of Europe convened a Pan-European Forum on “Human Rights in the Information Society: Responsible Behaviour by Key Actors” with representatives from state, industry and civil society. The Forum was a follow-up to the recent Declaration of the Committee of Ministers on Human Rights and the Rule of Law […]
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Recommended reading: cctv and workplace privacy
In the series Information Technology & Law, the Dutch University of Tilburg has published a volume on camera surveillance and workplace privacy, which includes 11 country reports. The European countries covered by the report are: the Netherlands, Belgium, the UK, Germany, Hungary and Italy. The editors argue that Europeans, similar to the US, have a […]
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UK Presidency attacks European Convention of Human Rights
In order to convince the European Parliament of the need for mandatory data retention, the UK presidency of the EU has challenged the validity of the European Convention of Human Rights. The UK Home Office secretary, Mr Clarke, basically told the European Parliament on 7 September that the 50 year old convention was outdated. Talking […]
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New French anti-terrorism surveillance plans
The French newspaper Le Monde has a number of articles on new plans from the French government for anti-terrorism legislation. On 6 September the Prime Minister, Dominique de Villepin presented a rough impression of 16 new measures to the members of parliament. The package will be presented to the Council of Ministers in October 2005. […]
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Preview Montreux conference Data Protection Authorities
European Digital Rights, together with a number of other international digital rights organisations, is organising two panels on data retention and on biometrics, as a pre-event to the annual DPA conference in Montreux, Switzerland on 13 September 2005. It is widely expected the Chair of the Article 29 Working Party, Peter Schaar, will close the […]
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Renewed speculations about RFID in Euro notes
The September edition of the German industry magazine Die Bank contains renewed speculation about the introduction of spy-chips in the Euro banknotes. The article discusses three possible new measures against the counterfeiting of the notes; a new biological paint, a colour-switch foil and the introduction of RFIDs (Radio Frequency Identification Devices) on every note. The […]
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EC: data protection inadequate in Austria and Germany
The European Commission has started infringement procedures against the governments of Austria and Germany for not creating adequate independence of the Data Protection Authorities. In Austria, the Commission was alerted by a complaint from the data protection association Arge Daten in October 2003. On 5 July 2005, the Commission responded by instigating official proceedings against […]
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German court outlaws wiretapping without court order
The German Constitutional Court has outlawed a special security law of the state of Niedersachsen that allowed police to wiretap telephone connections without any specific suspicion, as well as collect traffic data, GSM location data, e-mail and SMS traffic. The ruling also affects the state of Thuringen, with a similar law, and Bavaria, currently developing […]
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Romanian MPs propose wiretapping without court order
In Romania, 4 parliamentarians from the (opposition) Social Democrat Party (PSD) have initiated a draft law to drastically extend wiretapping powers in cases of defending national security. According to the draft law the interception of communications would be possible without a warrant from a judge in some cases. In special cases that involve the national […]
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