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The New EU Net Neutrality Guidelines: BEREC Responds to Criticism

Submitted by ben on 19 June 2020 - 4:38pm

NicMair

The Open Internet Regulation 2015/2120 forms the legal basis for the net neutrality protections that are in effect in the EU. The Regulation foresaw that the net neutrality rules would be evaluated by 30 April 2019, roughly three and a half years after the Regulation came into effect, and while the European Commission has decided not to amend the regulation, the Body of European Regulators of Electronic Communications (BEREC) has decided to update their implementation guidelines for national regulators.

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Net Neutrality

Help us survive the year!

Submitted by Anonymous on 20 May 2020 - 2:19pm

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This February we have celebrated our 10 year anniversary as an association. At the time, we enjoyed our little office party and we had no idea about what we would soon be faced with: the Corona crisis, for which we outlined implications and recommendations for digital rights right away. Not only did the Corona crisis increase our workload immensely, but it also complicated our work due to political circumstances.

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Privacy and Data Protection

Austria's Biggest Data Privacy Scandal: Private Residential Addresses Made Public

Submitted by peter91 on 11 May 2020 - 12:02pm

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Nobody took data protection into account for the so-called “Supplementary Register for Other Concerned Parties” (Ergänzungsregister für sonstige Betroffene). The Ministry for the Economy and the Finance Ministry are responsible for a data breach to which the Austrian Economic Chambers were an accomplice.

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Privacy and Data Protection

Analysis of the "Stopp Corona" App: Improvements through expert report

Submitted by Anonymous on 23 April 2020 - 11:44am

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Experts from epicenter.works, noyb.eu and SBA Research evaluated the Austrian Red Cross' "Stopp Corona" app for data security and privacy. No critical security gaps were found, but some potential for improvement in data protection implementation was identified. 

Many recommended improvements have already been implemented by the Austrian Red Cross. Within the existing system, some of these have already been implemented, others require long-term changes - including by Apple and Google.

Digital Rights Implications of the COVID-19 Crisis

Submitted by Thomas Lohninger on 25 March 2020 - 2:03pm

This is the start of a pandemic. The new challenges facing our society are enormous and we can only overcome them by working together. We all have to stick together and contribute towards shared solutions. At the moment, the most important thing we can do is follow the recommendations of the health authorities and the scientific community, especially when our own behaviour can help relieve the crisis. Nonetheless, we are convinced that we must make a contribution as a digital rights policy organisation.

Austria gets new legislation for Internet filters and they are for consumer protection

Submitted by peter91 on 28 January 2020 - 12:01pm

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Last week, epicenter.works submitted legal analysis on the draft legislation on Consumer Protection Cooperation. This bill introduces a wide range of powers for consumer protection organisations to block websites, seize domains and oblige hosters to delete information that it deems dangerous or illegal under consumer protection law. We see a number of problems with the the idea of internet filters, but the EU obliges Austria to implement these measures.

Tags: 
Net Neutrality

Austrian Government Hacking-Law Is Unconstitutional

Submitted by Anonymous on 17 December 2019 - 10:26am

Karola Riegler

The Austrian constitutional court decided on 11.12.2019 that the surveillance law that permits the use of spying software to read encrypted messages violates the fundamental right to respect for private life (article 8 ECHR), the fundamental right to data protection (§ 1 Austrian data protection law) and the constitutionally granted right that prohibits unreasonable searches (Art 9 Austrian bill of rights – Staatsgrundgesetz).

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Privacy and Data Protection
Surveillance Package
Government Spyware
Data Retention

Updating Net Neutrality in the EU: 5G, Zero-Rating, Parental Control, DPI

Submitted by ben on 29 October 2019 - 2:54pm

CC-BY Credo Action

The Body of European Regulators for Electronic Communications (BEREC) is currently in the process of overhauling their guidelines on the implementation of the Regulation (EU) 2015/2120, which forms the legal basis of the EU’s net neutrality rules. At its most recent plenary, BEREC produced new draft guidelines and opened a public consultation on this draft.

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Net Neutrality

Our PNR complaint to the Federal Administrative Court

Submitted by iwona on 8 October 2019 - 1:56pm

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A few weeks ago we have filed a complaint with the Austrian data protection authority about the Passenger Name Record. Our aim is to overturn the directive, in other words to virtually abolish it. Four weeks ago the data protection authority has rejected our complaint, which we think is good news, because that is the only way we can go to court. We now had four weeks to draft and file a complaint for the Federal Administrative Court.

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PNR