This was 2023 from a digital rights perspective: We look back on an eventful year.

This letter on the European Health Data Space and the ELGA opt-out (Elektronische Gesundheitsakte – electronic health record) was sent to: Austrian Chancellor Nehammer, Vice-Chancellor Kogler, Minister of health Rauch, State Secretary for Digitization Tursky, the Austrian parliamentary party whip,…

One single app to rent a hotel room, prove your age, your educational, financial or health certificates, or to access digital public and private services? Sounds convenient? Well, it is. But if done wrong, it will be equally easy for corporations, authorities or even bad actors to create highly…

The GDPR is five years old! This is well worth a drum roll because it marks the anniversary of a fairly uniform data protection standard in Europe. It is a Regulation and as such applicable in EU member states without the need for transposition into national law. And while its so-called “opening…

The rapid speed at which digital technologies are becoming increasingly connected and penetrate all areas of life also requires constant adaptation of legal regulations. This development also extends to the fighting of crime. Despite existing regulations at the regional level (for example, the…

In a press conference held today, the European Commission has initiated the end of privacy and confidentiality of communications on the internet in Europe. The proposed new legislation would require hosting and messenger providers to search the content of their users for potentially illegal content…

The European Union is about to redefine the ecodesign criteria for products in several legislative proposals, including the Sustainable Product Initiative, the Circular Electronics Initiative, and the Right to Repair. These proposals aim at extending the usage time of hardware and facilitating…

At the start of the trial against security adviser Julian Hessenthaler, who played a key role in the making of the so-called Ibiza video¹, 18 Austrian and international human rights organisations express their concern that his excessive criminal prosecution could – intentionally – have a deterring…

Research is important. Using research as a cover to obtain unchecked access to sensitive official data is not.

At the beginning of July, the Austrian chancellor, Sebastian Kurz, submitted to pre-parliamentary consultation a bill that would cause a seismic shift in how the government treats its…

Today, the European Parliament votes on the interinstitutional compromise text on the regulation(s) on the EU Digital COVID Certificate (EU DCC, also known as the Digital Green Certificate and the European Green Pass). The proposed legislation regulates the “framework for the issuance, verification…