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Submission to UN Ad-Hoc Committee on Cybercrime treaty

Submission to the Ad-Hoc Committee on UN Cybercrime Treaty

Privacy International (PI) and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) submitted their contribution for the second session of the Ad-Hoc Committee mandated to develop a UN Cybercrime Treaty. While the organisations are not convinced a global cybercrime treaty is necessary, we believe that any UN Cybercrime Treaty must ensure the respect and protection of human-rights.

Advocacy

Privacy International's intervention during the UN cybercrime treaty negotiations

Privacy International's intervention at the UN Cybercrime Treaty negotiations

On 2 March 2022, Privacy International intervened during the first session of the the Ad Hoc Committee responsible for drafting a potential United Nations Cybercrime Treaty.

In our intervention we focussed on the scope of the proposed treaty and the safeguards necessary to ensure human rights are respected.

Long Read

How digital health apps can exploit users’ data

Digital health apps of all kinds are being used by people to better understand their bodies, their fertility, and to access health information. But there are concerns that the information people both knowingly and unknowing provide to the app, which can be very personal health information, can be exploited in unexpected ways.

Explainer

Electronic monitoring using GPS tags: a tech primer

Electronic tags have been a key part of criminal justice for many years throughout the world. As traditional radio-frequency tags are replaced by GPS ankle tags, we examine how these different technologies work and the seismic shift that will result from 24/7 location monitoring and data analytics, enabled by GPS tags.

Advocacy

The UK Home Office finally responds to our questions about surveillance of Aspen Card users

A mere eight months after we wrote to the Home Office seeking clarification on their initial response to our correspondence regarding the Aspen Card, they have replied. This accompanied their response to our Freedom of Information Request.

News & Analysis

PI intervenes in judicial review to support asylum seekers against the UK Home Secretary’s seizure and extraction of their mobile phones

The Home Office has been seizing mobile phones from migrants arriving in the UK by small boats. Last week, PI intervened in a judicial review at the High Court challenging the lawfulness of this highly intrusive practice.

News & Analysis

Data Protection Impact Assessments and ID systems: the 2021 Kenyan ruling on Huduma Namba

In this article we provide background on the initial challenge of the Huduma Namba and subsequent developments which led to an important ruling of the High Court of Kenya on the retrospective effect of the Data Protection Act as we reflect on its wider implications for the governance and regulation of digital ID systems.

Advocacy

PI welcomes new guidelines by the Council of Europe on the use of personal data in political campaigns

PI has repeatedly called for authoritative guidance on the use of data to political parties and other organisations involved in political campaigns. Last November, the Council of Europe Committee on Convention No.108 adopted its Guidelines on the Protection of Individuals with regard to the Processing of Personal Data by and for Political Campaigns, following a thorough process of consultation to which PI participated.

PI welcomes these very comprehensive Guidelines.

Advocacy

Recommendations for the trilogue on the Digital Markets Act

Privacy International (PI) welcomes the aim of the Digital Markets Act (DMA) to address some of the challenges posed by the way the current digital markets operate. As we noted in our preliminary assessment, the proposal put forward by the European Commission in December 2020 contains some

News & Analysis

Why Forensics Matter: Immigration officers and the quality of evidence in the UK

2022 will see a raft of high tech surveillance tools emerging in the UK government’s arsenal, which will further entrench a ‘hostile environment’ for migrants. We have written to the UK Forensic Science Regulator, urging him to conduct a review into use of digital forensic activities by immigration officers.

Advocacy

CSO joint letter on UN cybercrime treaty

UN must include human rights safeguards in proposed UN Cybercrime Treaty

Privacy International joined organizations and academics working around the world to urge member states in the Ad Hoc Committee responsible for drafting a potential United Nations Cybercrime Treaty to ensure human rights protections are reflected in the any future treaty. The first session of the Ad Hoc Committee will begin on January 17th.

The proposed treaty will likely deal with cybercrime, international cooperation, and access to potential digital evidence by law enforcement authorities, as well as human rights and procedural safeguards.

Long Read

Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash

The use of SMS in the delivery of reproductive and maternal healthcare

Short Message Services (SMS) are being used in MHealth initiatives which aim to deliver crucial information to expecting and new mothers. But there are concerns that there is limited transparency about numerous aspects of SMS health services, and how the data is being processed, by whom and in accordance to what safeguards.

News & Analysis

A social media post depicting a blurred face

All we want for Christmas is... Clearview AI to be banned (and looks like it's happening)!

Bit by bit regulators across the world are chipping off the toxic business model that Clearview AI relies on.

Video

Green pill bottle with label reading Technology Pill surrounded by muli-colour pills with a sound waveform running behind it, text next to the bottle reads Victory! A clearview update: some (provisionally) good news from the UK

Victory! A Clearview update: some (provisionally) good news from the UK

The ICO has provisionally issued a £17 million fine against facial recognition company Clearview AI.

Long Read

Why we need to talk about digital health

In this piece we outline the main discussions and measures we need to see being systematically adopted to inform decision-making about digital solutions in the health sector, and provide examples of where these were not integrated in decision-making processes and with what consequences.

Advocacy

Privacy International and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association's submission to the Canadian consultation on facial recognition for police agencies

Privacy International and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association respond to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada's consultation on its draft privacy guidance on facial recognition for police agencies