Policy Observatory
EU proposal for automated car emergency calls addresses privacy concerns
Thu 4 Dec 2014, 19:40
Unclear data retention scheme in Australia
Thu 29 Jan 2015, 10:40
An inquiry revealed that the new mandatory data retention scheme in Australia still remains unclear for telecommunications and service providers. While it is clear that organisations would need to retain data, it is less clear, for example, whether providers of voice-based web services would need to keep data for two years.
Moreover, the president of the online privacy advocacy group Electronic Frontiers Australia, Jon Lawrence, raised considerable concerns about the proposal on privacy grounds. He said the nature of the data to be retained needed to be articulated in the legislation, and not in a regulation made subsequently by the attorney general.
Additionally, in written submissions to the inquiry, most law enforcement agencies were unable to provide information on how telecommunications data has been used to prevent crime and the age of the data requested.
First smartphone driver’s license
Thu 11 Dec 2014, 20:40
Iowa could be the first state to offer a smartphone driver’s license, with plans to launch a free app in 2015. According to The Des Moines Register, the license will be a free option alongside a traditional license. Iowa law enforcement offers will recognize the digital license during traffic stops, and airport personnel will accept it during screenings. For security, accessing the license will require a PIN.
US proposal for police body cameras
Tue 9 Dec 2014, 03:00
EFF discusses the pros and cons of President Obama’s announcement about federal assistance to local law enforcement. Body cameras are the most concrete piece of President Obama's proposal.
One of the problems is that, unless used very carefully, body cameras incidentally capture footage of anyone in the line of a police officer’s sight. An ACLU policy paper notes that body cameras can be a good thing— when accompanied by strong policies to address the privacy concerns. The paper points out several issues that must be considered in developing such policies.
UK report finds rising digital privacy concerns
Thu 21 Apr 2016, 19:00
A comprehensive study of Brits’ usage of and attitudes to digital media, conducted annually by telecoms watchdog Ofcom, suggests there is growing concern among web and app users about the privacy of their personal data.