Update on the Irish High Court’s proceeding to decide request for ECJ’s preliminary ruling on Model Clauses

Posted on by Federica Romanelli
According to the Irish Data Protection Authority (DPA) the hearing before the Irish High Court brought by the DPA against Facebook Ireland Ltd and Mr Schrems over EU-US data transfers will possibly take another additional week (or two addition weeks) to conclude. More information on the case is available here. According to the available sources (see here and here), as of March 3, 2017: Opening submissions have been made by the DPA, Facebook and Schrems; Mr Schrems’ expert witness, Read more [...]

Understanding colored padlocks in websites

Posted on by Federica Romanelli
You might have noticed that browsers have recently started to place symbols (colored padlocks) to grade the level of safety of the websites. Look at the web address: on the left, you will find symbols indicating the safety status. There are three types of symbols. Small green padlocks stand for secured websites, information or grey symbols may be found when the website is only partially secured; and red warning symbols make users aware that the information exchanged on the website is not secure. The Read more [...]

Proposta opposizione alle disposizioni privacy emesse dal garante per le comunicazioni americano a tutela dei consumatori di servizi a banda larga (in vigore dal gennaio 2017)

Posted on by Federica Romanelli
Il 2 novembre 2016, la Federal Communications Commission ("FCC"), un’autorità a livello federale americano per la tutela delle comunicazioni, ha pubblicato una serie di disposizioni (decisione denominata Protecting the Privacy of Customers of Broadband and Other Telecommunications Services), volte a proteggere la privacy dei consumatori di servizi su banda larga e di altri servizi di telecomunicazione. La decisione impone obblighi di riservatezza più stringenti ai gestori di servizi a banda larga Read more [...]

Google is compelled to surrender information stored abroad, a federal court holds

Posted on by Federica Romanelli
On February 3, 2017, the Pennsylvania US District Court granted the Government’s motions to compel Google to comply with search warrants, holding that this was not an extraterritorial application of the stored Communications Act 18 U.S.C. ("SCA"). The District Court had issued two search warrants, pursuant to section 2703 of the SCA §§ 2701 et seq., which required Google to disclose to agents of the FBI certain electronic data held in the accounts of targets in two separate criminal investigations. Read more [...]

Irish High Court to decide whether to ask ECJ to issue preliminary ruling on Model Clauses vis-a-vis Safe Harbor decision

Posted on by Federica Romanelli
Starting on February 7, 2017, the Irish High Court will hear a case brought by the Irish Data Protection Authority (DPA) against Facebook Ireland Ltd and Mr Schrems over EU-US data transfers after the Snowden disclosures. After the ECJ invalidated the “Safe Harbor” decision, Facebook performed its data transfer to the US using the “Model Clauses”. Mr. Schrems requested the suspension of data flow from the Irish DPA on the assumption that standard contractual clauses (SCCs) “do Read more [...]