Space data provide timely and reliable information that enables a wide variety of civil and commercial applications. Thanks to their volume, velocity, variety, and veracity, space big data create... Show moreSpace data provide timely and reliable information that enables a wide variety of civil and commercial applications. Thanks to their volume, velocity, variety, and veracity, space big data create the potential for additional benefits from space data.The benefits of space big data depend on the ways in which data are collected, accessed, used, and disseminated, therefore the laws and data policies that affect them should be studied. This thesis answers the question ‘How could space big data be regulated to address existing legal challenges and enhance their benefits?’. In particular, it identifies the laws and data policies that are relevant to the collection, access, use, and dissemination of space big data, among the legal frameworks that govern activities involving space or data. It also assesses the impact of the relevant laws and data policies, in terms of the limitations they impose on data collection, access, use, and dissemination. From the analysis of the relevant laws and data policies and their impact, the thesis draws the areas where their application encounters difficulties and describes the respective legal challenges. Based on these findings, recommendations are provided for overcoming the legal challenges and enhancing the collection, access, use, and dissemination of data, and by extension, their benefits. Show less
AI-powered emotion recognition, typing with thoughts or eavesdropping virtual assistants: three non-fictional examples illustrate how AI may impact society. AI-related products and services... Show moreAI-powered emotion recognition, typing with thoughts or eavesdropping virtual assistants: three non-fictional examples illustrate how AI may impact society. AI-related products and services increasingly find their way into daily life. Are the EU's fundamental rights to privacy and data protection equipped to protect individuals effectively? In addressing this question, the dissertation concludes that no new legal framework is needed. Instead, adjustments are required. First, the extent of adjustments depends on the AI discipline. There is nothing like 'the AI'. AI covers various concepts, including the disciplines machine learning, natural language processing, computer vision, affective computing and automated reasoning. Second, the extent of adjustments depends on the type of legal problem: legal provisions are violated (type 1), cannot be enforced (type 2) or are not fit for purpose (type 3). Type 2 and 3 problems require either adjustments of current provisions or new judicial interpretations. Two instruments might be helpful for more effective legislation: rebuttable presumptions and reversal of proof. In some cases, the solution is technical, not legal. Research in AI should solve reasoning deficiencies in AI systems and their lack of common sense. Show less
Uit een rechtshistorische analyse van de Wwft blijkt dat het bewaren van een kopie van het legitimatiebewijs op grond van de reconstructieplicht (artikel 33) van de Wwft van cliënten niet verplicht... Show moreUit een rechtshistorische analyse van de Wwft blijkt dat het bewaren van een kopie van het legitimatiebewijs op grond van de reconstructieplicht (artikel 33) van de Wwft van cliënten niet verplicht is, wel kan maar niet altijd mag, en dat de Wwft geen grondslag biedt, laat staan een verplichting bevat, om foto’s en audio- en video-opnamen van cliënten te bewaren.Het bewaren van een kopie van een legitimatiebewijs vormt een ernstigere inperking van het fundamentele recht op privacy en gegevensbescherming (artikel 8 EVRM, artikelen 7 en 8 EU Handvest) dan het enkel bewaren van losse identiteitsgegevens, omdat een kopie legitimatiebewijs een groter en ernstiger risico op misbruik met zich meebrengt dan de bewaring van losse identiteitsgegevens. Nu op grond van de Wwft het (enkel) bewaren van identiteitsgegevens volstaat, schrijft het subsidiariteitsvereiste voor dat instellingen daar indien mogelijk ook voor moeten kiezen, in plaats van voor het (ook) bewaren van een kopie van het legitimatiebewijs van de cliënt. Het subsidiariteitsvereiste staat er in de context van de reconstructieplicht van de Wwft om dezelfde reden aan in de weg om een kopie legitimatiebewijs te bewaren waar ook andere gegevens (foto, handtekening, burgerservicenummer) op zichtbaar zijn. Show less
The Netherlands has endorsed a unique system regarding the management, disclosure and screening of criminal records. Disclosure to third parties is strongly restricted, yet all (potential)... Show moreThe Netherlands has endorsed a unique system regarding the management, disclosure and screening of criminal records. Disclosure to third parties is strongly restricted, yet all (potential) employees can request a government agency to provide a risk assessment − known as a Certificate of Conduct (‘VOG’ in Dutch) − for every kind of employment application to determine whether they are fit for a given job. This article explains how and why this Dutch policy approach, deemed respectful of individual privacy rights, can nonetheless go hand in hand with the promotion, proliferation and pervasiveness of criminal record screening. It challenges the often dichotomic approach of the comparative literature on criminal record policies and helps understand that privacy protection alone cannot be fully equated with the rehabilitation and re-entry in society of people with a criminal history. Although the Dutch criminal record system avoids any unnecessary publicity of criminal record data, it nonetheless triggers adverse impairments on reintegration processes through stigmatisation and exclusion resulting from the ubiquitous use of Certificates of Conduct in the labour market. This questions the promotion of the Dutch screening instrument as an exemplary model for criminal record information sharing within Europe. Show less
Targeted advertising is the primary revenue stream for the largest online platforms that act as the internet’s gatekeepers, such as Alphabet and Meta. The financial incentives drive targeted... Show moreTargeted advertising is the primary revenue stream for the largest online platforms that act as the internet’s gatekeepers, such as Alphabet and Meta. The financial incentives drive targeted advertising towards maximizing the efficiency of algorithmically matching advertisements with consumers, which typically requires building fine-grained profiles that rely on consumers’ personal data. In the European Union (EU), the protection of personal data is a fundamental right operationalized by the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), establishing the limits of targeted advertising to the extent that it relies on the processing of personal data. Nevertheless, as online interface design and fine-grained personalization allow platforms and other publishers new ways to influence consumers, targeted advertising is also associated with the potential for consumer manipulation.While the consumer protection framework in the EU is the primary field that protects consumers from manipulation, it has received little attention in academia in the context of targeted advertising whencompared with the GDPR. In 2022, the EU adopted proposals for the Digital Services Act (DSA) and the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which contain consumer protection rules that directly limit targeted advertising. These developments in consumer protection law may fundamentally transform the internet, as its gatekeepers are now faced with a new legal regime that regulates their primary source of revenue.This Article provides an overview of the myriad of legislation that comprises the EU consumer protection framework—including how it intersects with the data protection framework—and analyzes how andthe extent to which it coalesces to limit targeted advertising. Show less
Het mediabedrijf ‘Standard Verlagsgesellschaft’ exploiteert een online discussieforum waarop gebruikers anoniem commentaren kunnen plaatsen onder artikelen. Twee politici voelden zich door deze... Show moreHet mediabedrijf ‘Standard Verlagsgesellschaft’ exploiteert een online discussieforum waarop gebruikers anoniem commentaren kunnen plaatsen onder artikelen. Twee politici voelden zich door deze commentaren beledigd en kregen van de Oostenrijkse rechter gedaan dat het mediabedrijf de namen van de anonieme schrijvers moest noemen. Hoewel het recht op bronbescherming niet van toepassing was, oordeelt het EHRM dat artikel 10 EVRM door het bevel is geschonden. Show less
This online article discusses all (almost 50) rulings given by international judicial and quasi-judicial bodies on the topic of same-sex partnership, plus relevant written and soft law from other... Show moreThis online article discusses all (almost 50) rulings given by international judicial and quasi-judicial bodies on the topic of same-sex partnership, plus relevant written and soft law from other bodies of international organisations such as the UN and the EU. The article covers human rights law and international staff law, and touches on rules of free movement and private international law. It includes paragraphs on state practice, parenting issues, same-sex marriage, informal cohabitation, registered partnership, international recognition of existing same-sex marriages, and international recognition of existing registered partnerships. Earlier versions of this article appeared online in 2009 and 2014 and in print in 2012. In light of the considerable legal developments since then, it now concludes as follows (in paragraphs 38-40): “International protection for same-sex partnership is a topic that has seen important developments recently (…). At least two ‘global’ norms have emerged:(1) a prohibition of discrimination between unmarried different-sex cohabitants and unmarried same-sex cohabitants; and(2) an obligation to recognize existing same-sex marriages from other jurisdictions (at least for some purposes).Two related ‘global’ norms seem to be emerging (…):(3) an obligation to respect existing marriages that are becoming ‘same-sex’ because one of the spouses is having a change of sex/gender; and(4) an obligation to recognize existing registered partnerships from other jurisdictions (at least for some purposes). (…)Authority for these four ‘global’ norms can be found in decisions of bodies of the UN, in decisions of European and Inter-American bodies, and also in the domestic law of countries in different parts of the world. (…)In two regions of the world (Europe and the Americas) two further norms are emerging. One of these regionally emerging norms is:(5) an obligation to give same-sex couples access to a legal framework for their relationship. In the Americas this emerging obligation ultimately requires the opening up of marriage, while in Europe it still leaves it to the countries themselves to decide whether this legal framework will be marriage or only a form of registered partnership (…). The other regionally emerging norm is:(6) an obligation to give same-sex couples access to rights and benefits derived from marriage. In the Americas this obligation seems to concern all rights that flow from marriage, while in Europe it so far seems limited to core or essential rights, such as the right to live in the same country as your partner (…). For these emerging regional norms there is not yet much authority in decisions of bodies of the UN, and even less from regional bodies outside Europe and the Americas. However, these norms do reflect developments in domestic law that have at least started on all continents. It seems likely that in both regions the international case law will crystalize further, and there seems scope for some convergence between the approaches of ECtHR and IACtHR. (…) (Also because) both courts have acknowledged both the controversial character and the dynamic nature of developments in the national and international protection of same-sex partnership. (…)”This article is available (to subscribers - and sometimes also to others) at: https://opil.ouplaw.com/view/10.1093/law:epil/9780199231690/law-9780199231690-e1739. A summary by Kees Waaldijk ('Six international legal norms on the protection of same-sex partnership have emerged') was published in the International and Comparative SOGIESC LawBlog (edited by Andreas R. Ziegler, University of Lausanne): https://sogiesc.law.blog/2021/12/20/six-international-legal-norms-on-the-protection-of-same-sex-partnership-have-emerged. Show less
Fosch Villaronga, E.; Hof, S. van der; Lutz, C.; Tamò Larrieux, A. 2021
Policymakers need to start considering the impact smart connected toys (SCTs) have on children. Equipped with sensors, data processing capacities, and connectivity, SCTs targeting children... Show morePolicymakers need to start considering the impact smart connected toys (SCTs) have on children. Equipped with sensors, data processing capacities, and connectivity, SCTs targeting children increasingly penetrate pervasively personal environ- ments. The network of SCTs forms the Internet of Toys (IoToys) and often increases children's engagement and playtime experience. Unfortunately, this young part of the population and, most of the time, their parents are often unaware of SCTs’ far-reaching capacities and limitations. The capabilities and constraints of SCTs create severe side effects at the technical, individual, and societal level. These side effects are often unforeseeable and unexpected. They arise from the technology's use and the interconnected nature of the IoToys, without necessarily involving malevolence from their creators. Although existing regulations and new ethical guidelines for artificial intelligence provide remedies to address some of the side effects, policymakers did not develop these redress mechanisms having children and SCTs in mind. This article provides an analysis of the arising side effects of SCTs and contrasts them with current regulatory redress mechanisms. We thereby highlight misfits and needs for further policymaking efforts. Show less
Upon receipt of a right to be forgotten request, private actors like Google are responsible for implementing the balancing test between competing rights of privacy and data protection and free... Show moreUpon receipt of a right to be forgotten request, private actors like Google are responsible for implementing the balancing test between competing rights of privacy and data protection and free expression and access to information. This amounts to private jurisprudence that data subjects, lawyers, and interested parties could, theoretically, game to their advantage. This paper critiques this process and argues two separate, but related points. (1) Search engines have become the sole arbiter of the rights to privacy and data protection under Articles 7 and of the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Articles 8 and 10 of the European Convention of Human Rights, when safeguarding should be a responsibility of state authorities. (2) As private actors face litigation if their decision is not acceptable to the data subject, the right to access information and the public's right to know is compromised. Search engines exert considerable power over access to and Internet usage, yet nevertheless benefit from frameworks that permit a lack of adherence to similar human rights standards as public actors or agencies. As such, empowering search engines as decision-makers over conflicting fundamental rights is problematic. Rather than allow the content of the right to be forgotten to be fleshed out by private actors, the significant body of existing jurisprudence should form the basis for public guidelines on how to implement the right to be forgotten. An analysis of case law of national courts, the European Court of Human Rights and the CJEU reveals two related matters: it is possible to reverse engineer how search engines determine which requests will be actioned and those which will be denied. This paper argues a) collectively the body of jurisprudence is of sufficient standing to develop a public and transparent balancing test that is fair to all stakeholders and b) private actors should no longer be resolving the conflict between competing fundamental rights. The paper closes by positing a framework, loosely based on ICANN's Uniform Domain Resolution Procedure for resolving conflict between conflicting cyber property rights that provides transparency and accountability to the right to be forgotten and removes search engines as arbiters of the balancing test in select cases. Show less
This paper confronts assertions made by Dr Michael Veale, Dr Reuben Binns, and Professor Lilian Edwards in “Algorithms that remember: Model Inversion Attacks and Data Protection Law”, as well as... Show moreThis paper confronts assertions made by Dr Michael Veale, Dr Reuben Binns, and Professor Lilian Edwards in “Algorithms that remember: Model Inversion Attacks and Data Protection Law”, as well as the general trend by the courts to broaden the definition of ‘personal data’ under Article 4(1) GDPR to include ‘everything data-related’. Veale et al use examples from computer science to suggest some models, subject to certain attacks, reveal personal data. Accordingly, Veale et al argue that data subject rights could be exercised against the model itself. A computer science perspective, as well as case law from the Court of Justice of the European Union, is used to argue that effective machine-learning model governance can be achieved without widening the scope of personal data and that the governance of machine-learning models is better achieved through already existing provisions of data protection and other areas of law. Extending the scope of personal data to machine-learning models would render the protections granted to intelligent endeavours within the black box ineffectual. Show less
This research focuses on data subject rights – a set of data protection provisions that directly linked to the concept of individual control. In 2018, the European Parliament adopted the... Show moreThis research focuses on data subject rights – a set of data protection provisions that directly linked to the concept of individual control. In 2018, the European Parliament adopted the Regulation on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data (GDPR). The new law also introduced some substantial improvements in the section on data subject rights. However, in the light of the fast-changing economic and technological environment, it is possible to notice a gap between data subject rights when understood as law in the books and when applied in practice. By using the analysis of legal sources and academic literature, this thesis explored whether the data subject rights under the GDPR are effective in the data-driven economy, and if not, what are possible solutions to overcome the shortcomings. Show less
Our lives are increasingly intertwined with the digital realm, and with new technology, new ethical problems emerge. The academic field that addresses these problems—which we tentatively call ... Show moreOur lives are increasingly intertwined with the digital realm, and with new technology, new ethical problems emerge. The academic field that addresses these problems—which we tentatively call ‘digital ethics’—can be an important intellectual resource for policy making and regulation. This is why it is important to understand how the new ethical challenges of a digital society are being met by academic research. We have undertaken a scientometric analysis to arrive at a better understanding of the nature, scope and dynamics of the field of digital ethics. Our approach in this paper shows how the field of digital ethics is distributed over various academic disciplines. By first having experts select a collection of keywords central to digital ethics, we have generated a dataset of articles discussing these issues. This approach allows us to generate a scientometric visualisation of the field of digital ethics, without being constrained by any preconceived definitions of academic disciplines. We have first of all found that the number of publications pertaining to digital ethics is exponentially increasing. We furthermore established that whereas one may expect digital ethics to be a species of ethics, we in fact found that the various questions pertaining to digital ethics are predominantly being discussed in computer science, law and biomedical science. It is in these fields, more than in the independent field of ethics, that ethical discourse is being developed around concrete and often technical issues. Moreover, it appears that some important ethical values are very prominent in one field (e.g., autonomy in medical science), while being almost absent in others. We conclude that to get a thorough understanding of, and grip on, all the hard ethical questions of a digital society, ethicists, policy makers and legal scholars will need to familiarize themselves with the concrete and practical work that is being done across a range of different scientific fields to deal with these questions. Show less
This study examines the following investigative methods that are commonly used in cybercrime investigations: (1) the gathering of publicly available online information, (2) the issuing of... Show more This study examines the following investigative methods that are commonly used in cybercrime investigations: (1) the gathering of publicly available online information, (2) the issuing of data production orders to online service providers, (3) the use of online undercover investigative methods, and (4) performing hacking as an investigative method. For many of these investigative methods, the legal basis in Dutch law is ambiguous. However, a clear legal basis for investigative methods that indicates the scope of investigative methods and the manner in which they are applied must be available. It helps prevent arbitrary application of power by governmental authorities and is therefore essential for protecting the rule of law. The author examines how a foreseeable legal framework for the identified investigative methods can be created that meets the requirements that are derived from the right to privacy in art. 8 ECHR. The borderless nature of the Internet is also taken into account. The question is addressed to which extent digital investigative methods can be applied unilaterally across State borders. The analysis results in a list of recommendations to improve the regulations for digital investigative methods on both the domestic level and the international level. Show less
This Italian version of this article is online at www.articolo29.it/genius, the English version at scholarship.law.duke.edu/djcil/vol24/iss1/4, the Dutch version at hdl.handle.net/1887/24920, and...Show moreThis Italian version of this article is online at www.articolo29.it/genius, the English version at scholarship.law.duke.edu/djcil/vol24/iss1/4, the Dutch version at hdl.handle.net/1887/24920, and the Vietnamese version at hdl.handle.net/1887/24934.The right to establish and develop relationships with other human beings was first articulated — as an aspect of the right to respect for private life — by the European Commission of Human Rights (in 1976). Since then such a right has been recognised in similar words by national and international courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court (Roberts v. U.S. Jaycees), the European Court of Human Rights (Niemietz v. Germany), the Constitutional Court of South Africa (National Coalition for Gay and Lesbian Equality), and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (Ortega v. Mexico). This lecture traces the origins of this right, linking it to the meaning of the word ‘orientation’ and to the basic psychological need for love, affection and belongingness (Maslow 1943). It proposes to speak of ‘the right to relate’, and argues that this right can be seen as the common theme in all issues of sexual orientation law (ranging from decriminalisation and anti-discrimination, to the recognition of refugees and of same-sex parenting). This right can be used as the common denominator in the comparative study of all those laws in the world that are anti-homosexual, or that are same-sex-friendly. The right to establish (same-sex) relationships implies both a right to come out, and a right to come together. The right to develop (same-sex) relationships is being made operational through legal respect, legal protection, legal recognition, legal formalization, and legal recognition of foreign formalization. Show less
This article is available online at http://opil.ouplaw.com. International protection for same-sex partnership is a topic that has seen important developments recently, reflecting more extensive... Show moreThis article is available online at http://opil.ouplaw.com. International protection for same-sex partnership is a topic that has seen important developments recently, reflecting more extensive national developments in a growing number of countries. These national and international developments are likely to continue and to reinforce each other. The current state of international law seems to be quite clear on two points: discrimination between unmarried different-sex cohabitants and unmarried same-sex cohabitants is prohibited, and exclusion of same-sex couples from marriage is (probably) still permissible. In between those two points the field is less clear. There is growing support for the proposition that a registered partnership or same-sex marriage validly contracted in one country should be recognized by international organizations and — for certain purposes — also by other countries. And there are reasons to expect that international bodies will apply the prohibition of indirect discrimination to situations where same-sex partners are being excluded from certain legal benefits, because these are only available to married partners. This indirect discrimination argument, which focuses on providing specific benefits, rather than on obtaining status, has been accepted already in several domestic courts. In the short run, persuading international human rights courts and bodies to apply it will probably be the most effective way of increasing the international protection of same-sex partnership. Several countries have, in response to claims that marriage should be opened up to same-sex couples, introduced a form of registered partnership. Assuming that international human rights law will not soon require all countries in the world to open up marriage to same-sex couples, and assuming that many legislatures will be reluctant to attach all rights and obligations of marriage to non-registered cohabitation, it seems possible that some day international human rights courts and bodies will start to require that countries should introduce some alternative to marriage. Any claims in this field deserve serious attention, because, as the European Court of Human Rights has consistently put it, the right to respect for private life encompasses ‘the right to establish and develop relationships with other human beings’. Show less
Perl, H.; Mohammed, Y.; Brenner, M.; Smith, M. 2014
