Category Archives: Law enforcement

Access to data / content data / Data protection / interception / Internet intermediaries / Law enforcement / metadata / Privacy

What if Commissioners could be heard by the right people? Why DRIPA is getting muddier and muddier…

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Just before Christmas, the UK Interception of Communications Commissioner’s Office (IOCCO) published online its submission for the Investigatory Powers Review. It is a 51 p. document full of interesting things. The purpose of this post is to highlight the main points made by the IOCCO with a view to clarifying the debate as regards the … Continue reading →

Data protection / Internet intermediaries / Law enforcement / Privacy / Surveillance / video surveillance

CJEU interprets the concept of ‘in the course of a purely personal or household activity’ and indirectly delineates the remit of the Data Protection Directive

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In its judgement of 11 December 2014 (Case C-212/13 František Ryneš v Úřad pro ochranu osobních údajů) the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) had to answer “a very precise” question [to use the words of Advocate General JÄÄSKINEN]: “Can the operation of a camera system installed on a family home for the … Continue reading →

Data protection / Internet intermediaries / Law enforcement / Surveillance

Are the Europeans that different from the Americans? Can online service providers rely upon their privacy policies to systematically gather the metadata and content data of online communications in order to detect all sorts of illegal activities and let law enforcement bodies know?

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That online service providers (OSPs), including Internet Service providers (ISPs), can do almost all what they want with our data, as long as they have a “decent” privacy policy, has just been confirmed in the US by the very recent decision of the District Court for the Southern District of New York. I have already … Continue reading →

Data retention / Internet intermediaries / Law enforcement / Security

The potential impact of the Counter Terrorism and Security Bill on the Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Act 2014

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Small drips but when might the floodgates open? – UK public telecoms to retain more types of communications data in the future Further to Sophie’s post last week on the potential impact of the Counter Terrorism and Security Bill (‘CTSB’) proposed last month by the UK government, one of our research colleagues at the University … Continue reading →

Access to data / Data retention / Internet intermediaries / Law enforcement / Surveillance

Could the Counter-Terrorism and Security Bill really change things for online service providers?

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The Counter-Terrorism and Security Bill (CTSB) was introduced in the House of Commons on 26 November 2014 as a way to “address the capabilities gap the authorities face when it comes to communications data” says Theresa May. In particular, the aim is to “require internet providers to retain Internet Protocol – or IP – address … Continue reading →

Access to data / Internet intermediaries / Law enforcement / Privacy

Metadata, content data almost the same thing? Yes, implies a N.Y. District Court! But is it for good or bad?

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Shira A. Scheindlin, a District Judge from the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York issued a very interesting opinion on 28 October 2014 for those eager to know if the distinction between metadata and content data does make sense [members of the Peep Beep! team have already took their pens … Continue reading →

Access to data / Data protection / Law enforcement

Pointing the Finger – Recent US Decisions on Access to Mobile Phone Data

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In the United States a Circuit Court last week ruled that a defendant in a criminal case can be compelled to provide his fingerprints but not the access code to his mobile phone. Judge Steven C. Frucci of the 2nd Judicial District of Virginia, in a case against David Baust who is accused of trying … Continue reading →

Law enforcement / Revenge porn

Updated guidance on prosecuting social media ‘revenge porn’

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The UK Crown Prosecution Service has issued a press release notifying an update to its legal guidance on the prosecution of social media communications, including on how current legislation can be used to prosecute instances of so-called ‘revenge pornography’ (the online publication of sexually explicit media without the consent of a pictured individual, usually by … Continue reading →