UK Intercept Modernisation Programme delayed until after next election

The Independent reports that plans to store information about every phone call, email and internet visit in the United Kingdom have in effect been abandoned by the Government.
The Home Office confirmed the “Big Brother” scheme had been delayed until after the election amid protests that it would be intrusive and open to abuse. Although ministers [...]

Four EU countries oppose SWIFT bank data deal with US ahead of Lisbon Treaty

Opposition from four member states to a draft agreement between the EU and US allowing the use of banking data in anti-terrorist investigations is likely to delay a decision until after 1 December, drawing the European Parliament into the decision making process. Citing data privacy concerns, Germany, Austria, France and Finland are opposing the text [...]

Opinion of the EDPS on the access of law enforcement authorities to EURODAC

Read the opinion here.

UK consultation about changing communications environment

The consultation examined how the rapidly changing communications environment means the existing capability of the police, the security and intelligence agencies and other public authorities is declining, and why change is necessary in the UK. It asked for views on options for maintaining vital communications data capabilities. The responses found that the rejection of a [...]

Civil society declaration on global privacy standards

The declaration was presentation at a privacy conference in Madrid and included a call for a moratorium on “the development or implementation of new systems of mass surveillance, including facial recognition, whole body imaging, biometric identifiers, and embedded RFID tags, subject to a full and transparent evaluation by independent authorities and democratic debate.”
More news here.

Campaign against the Belgian transposition of the European directive on the retention of data

By means of a website (www.bewaarjeprivacy.be for the Dutch version or www.preservetavieprivee.be for the French version) and a petition, a wide platform of organisations has launched a campaign against the Belgian transposition of the European data retention directive. These organisations include the Flemish and Walloon League for Human Rights, the Flemish and Walloon Bar, the [...]

New Zealand government releases privacy guidelines on the use of CCTV

Commissioner Marie Shroff said the use of CCTV was proliferating, both in New Zealand and overseas.
“It seems that everywhere you look, someone has a camera trained on you.
“This raises questions such as what exactly the images are being used for, how secure they are from misuse or unauthorised viewing, whether the cameras are unnecessarily intrusive, [...]

EU-US to sign new extradition treaty

The EU and the US will next week (28 October) sign a treaty intended to simplify and accelerate the extradition of those suspected of serious crimes, the European Voice reports. The treaty, which will come into force next year, broadens the definition of serious crime to overcome problems with old bilateral treaties, which, for example, [...]

European Privacy Association issues principles, asks for EU Cybersecurity commissioner

Their guiding principles are as follows:
1. Privacy is an assetIt can be “an instrument for improving the competitiveness of their companies, transforming them into allies of citizens, who are also often their customers.” EPA specifically favours and promotoes ‘privacy by design’ and PET’s.
2. Privacy and cybersecurityWith the advent of “cloud computing”,personal data, security of storage, [...]

Romania: Data retention law declared unconstitutional

The Romanian Constitutional Court (CCR) announced on 7 October 2009 that it took the decision to consider unconstitutional the Romanian implementation of the data retention directive. The motivated decision has not been made public yet. More info here.