Tag: UK

Lenovo has settled a case involving adware on laptops that used a very insecure method of tracking the web browsing habits of users.

The UK has failed to protect its citizens’ fundamental rights to privacy and secure communications.

This month, the European Commission responded to a letter sent on behalf of 21 digital rights organisations – including Access, Foundation for Information Policy Research (FIPR), EDRi, Initiative für Netzfreiheit, AKVorrat, and EFF – outlining several violations of E.U. law in the passage of the Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Act (DRIP) in the United Kingdom.

Access received a response from the European Commission acknowledging a notification of infringement sent two weeks ago in a letter to Michel Barnier, Commissioner in charge for Enterprise and Industry. The complaint addresses the United Kingdom’s breach of E.U. law through its adoption of the Data Retention and Investigatory Powers (DRIP) on 18 July 2014.

Speaking at Vodafone’s annual shareholder meeting in London on Tuesday, July 29, Access Senior Policy Counsel Peter Micek challenged the company to take a greater role in stopping government surveillance.

Today Access, together with 20 digital and civil rights organisations, sent the following letter (linked here and below) to E.U. Commissioners Michel Barnier and Cecilia Malmström to bring their attention to an infringement of E.U. law by the United Kingdom through the adoption of the Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Act (“DRIP”).

This week the U.K. Parliament adopted the “Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Act,” or DRIP, a bill that would dramatically expand the government’s surveillance powers. In the runup to the vote, the GCHQ, civil service, and coalition and opposition leaders showed a flagrant disregard for parliamentary procedure and failed to allow an informed and public debate. The result is a terrible bill that would treat all citizens, in the U.K. and abroad, as surveillance targets.

Access Senior Policy Counsel Peter Micek questioned the company on transparency reports, surveillance, and sweeping data retention legislation making its way rapidly through the UK Parliament.