• EU-US data transfers: Why Safe Harbour 2.0 may just be an empty shell

    EU-US data transfers: Why Safe Harbour 2.0 may just be an empty shell1

    The European Commission and the US have just come to a deal to replace Safe Harbour, which ensured a blanket allowance for EU-US data transfers before its invalidation by the European Court of Justice (ECJ). The newly-baptised Privacy Shield is supposed to set a framework for transatlantic data flows ensuring compliance with the EU Data Protection Directive. However, except for a fancy new name and a couple of nice declarations of intention, there is – at this time – no sign that it will offer better guarantees regarding EU citizens’ rights to privacy and data protection.

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  • EU-PNR directive: Overlooking EU fundamental rights will not make Europe safer

    EU-PNR directive: Overlooking EU fundamental rights will not make Europe safer2

    On 2 December 2015, the European Parliament’s Civil Liberties (LIBE) Committee endorsed a directive on “the use of passenger name record (PNR) data for the prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of terrorist offences and serious crime” (EU-PNR). It seems, therefore, that the long journey of the EU-PNR directive – initially proposed in 2011 – is coming to its end, as the European Parliament (EP) is expected to hold a final vote in February 2016. However, this directive still seems strongly contestable – and contested – on the grounds that it jeopardizes EU citizens’ fundamental rights to privacy and data protection (Art. 7 and 8), while its effectiveness in fighting terrorism remains unclear

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  • What does the internet mean?

    What does the internet mean?3

    The United Nations’ (UN)  2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development declares seeking “to bridge the digital divide”, including as its 9th goal the aim to “[…] significantly increase access to information and communications technology and strive to provide universal and affordable access to the Internet in least developed countries by 2020”. The op-ed is focused on one particular aspect of the current debate on Net Neutrality, namely zero-rating, and its implications for internet users around the world.

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