Privacy Transformation - Issue 8
Max Schrems and the question of whether SCC's comply with Europe’s data protection laws was before the ECJ this week. Europe's top court will give an opinion on December 12th which could have a significant affect on how hundreds of thousands of companies transfer personal data worldwide.
The ICO have not been resting on their laurels,- issuing two 'intention to fine ' notices and their annual report in the same week.
This is your roundup of this week in privacy news - enjoy.
- Alan
PRIVACY
Human rights groups seek to build on historic surveillance judgment in Grand Chamber appeal
Following last year’s victory in which the European Court of Human Rights found the UK’s historic surveillance regime was illegal, a coalition of human rights groups will ask the Strasbourg Court’s Grand Chamber to go further in its judgment.
Digital Rights Ireland, Liberty and Big Brother Watch are among those who have a filed a submission against the UK.
Helen Dixon says the State showing ‘complete immaturity’ on data strategy
Footage of Data Protection Commissioner Helen Dixon speaking at a recent event in Israel shows her criticising the government’s plans for ID cards, which she warns may breach EU laws.
UK Police face calls to end use of facial recognition software
Police are facing calls to halt the use of facial recognition software to search for suspected criminals in public after independent analysis found matches were only correct in a fifth of cases and the system was likely to break human rights laws.
Children want social media profiles wiped clean at 18, LSE study finds
Social media accounts of children should be automatically wiped when they reach 18, a new study has found.
Amazon Alexa offering NHS health advice
The voice-assisted device will give official NHS advice, but critics fear a "data protection disaster".
DATA BREACHES
DNA Test Service Exposed Thousands of Client Records Online
DNA-testing service Vitagene Inc. left thousands of client health reports exposed online for years, the kind of incident that privacy advocates have warned about as gene testing has become increasingly popular.
HSE data breaches: Misplaced patient records discovered in pub, lost medical files turned up on bus
Misplaced patient records from Letterkenny University Hospital were found in a pub last year, while lost medical files containing personal data turned up on a bus in Waterford.
ENFORCEMENT
Intention to fine Marriott International, Inc more than £99 million under GDPR for data breach
Following an extensive investigation the ICO has issued a notice of its intention to fine Marriott International £99,200,396 for infringements of the General Data Protection Regulation.
Intention to fine British Airways £183.39m under GDPR for data breach
Following an extensive investigation the ICO has issued a notice of its intention to fine British Airways £183.39M for infringements of the General Data Protection Regulation.
COURTS, JUDGEMENTS & OPINIONS
Irish watchdog’s case against Facebook to be heard in Europe’s highest court
Six years after Max Schrems launched his privacy battle against Facebook, the Austrian campaigner returns this morning to Europe’s highest court for a second time.
Watchdog takes bizarre legal route in data privacy case
The case arises out of last year’s European Court of Justice (ECJ) decision that the ODPC had a duty to investigate Schrems’s complaint against Facebook Ireland regarding the handling of his data in the United States.
Schrems II will seriously stress test EU’s data privacy rules
Justices heard arguments in a full-day hearing on Tuesday in the so-called Schrems II case, which questions whether data transfer template agreements, called standard contractual clauses (SCCs), adequately meet Europe’s data protection laws.
Opinion 14/2019 on the draft Standard Contractual Clauses submitted by the DK SA (Article 28(8) GDPR)
Opinion 14/2019 on the draft Standard Contractual Clauses submitted by the DK SA (Article 28(8) GDPR)
RESOURCES
ICO Publishes Annual Report 2018-2019
During what has been a busy week in making headlines or the ICO, they also released their annual report providing insights into their activity over the previous year, and perhaps not unsurprisingly - it confirms it has been a very busy year indeed.
Online platforms and digital advertising market study
The Competition and Markets Authority is carrying out a market study into online platforms and the digital advertising market in the UK.