Centre for Democracy & Technology Europe

“The first ingredient we need (to tackle the scandal of spyware used against citizens) is political will” - Sophie in 't Veld 🕵️. Yesterday, the panellists at CDT Europe’s high-level event “Exploring Ways Forward to Combat Spyware in the EU” were united in the view that, following the Pegasus spyware scandal, there is an urgent need for action to tackle the use of this severely intrusive technology which is being used against citizens and is a threat to their fundamental rights. CDT Europe was joined by speakers Sophie in 't Veld Veld MEP, David Kaye of University of California, Irvine School of Law, Anna Buchta of EDPS - European Data Protection Supervisor and Iverna McGOWAN of United Nations Human Rights to discuss ways forward to combating spyware in the next EU mandate. Some key takeaways were: 🇪🇺 The EU has shown a concerted lack of action on spyware; 🙅♀️ This technology is completely incompatible with human rights and there is a big question as to whether its use can ever be justified even in the national security context; 👉 There is a need for a democratic societal debate as to whether the use of spyware should ever be allowed against civilians; 👉When it comes to ways forward, a multi-stakeholder approach will be key and the involvement of civil society vital. We were then joined by civil society partners to take forward the discussion and find ways to maintain the need for solutions high on the agenda of EU institutions in the next EU mandate to ensure accountability, transparency and respect for fundamental rights in the use of spyware. Our thanks to the speakers at our event, those that joined online and our civil society attendees for their participation in this fruitful discussion. Watch the event: https://lnkd.in/eaUb9UNj #Spyware #Surveillance #Pegasus 

With EU citizens heading to the polling booths in less than a month, and over half the world’s population heading to the ballot box, there couldn’t be a more urgent time to put the spotlight on the shocking reality faced by female politicians both off and online 🗳. CDT Europe’s Acting Director, Asha Allen spoke to Euronews’ Brussels, my love? programme this weekend, with Méabh Mc Mahon, to discuss online gender based violence and the impact it has on women politicians. Asha commented to Euronews: “Women politicians are disproportionately at a significantly higher risk of experiencing online harm, gender based violence and gender disinformation, which is targeted at them to silence their voices and remove them from the political space." "This has a direct impact on the march towards gender equity in politics. A lot of women are leaving the space and many young women are hesitant to even engage or chase a political career because of the reality of the online ecosystem being unsafe for women politicians.” This is evidenced in Center for Democracy & Technology research which found that women of colour candidates in the 2020 U.S. general elections encountered mis- and disinformation and the worst kinds of online harassment at higher rates than other candidates. Read more about CDT’s award winning research into women of colour candidates and disinformation and online abuse: https://lnkd.in/e6VsWxwN #GenderBasedViolence #GBV #EUelections #EUelections2024 

📢 Join us next week on 15 May for an online event addressing the aftermath of the Pegasus spyware scandal and its global impact! We’re thrilled to announce a stellar line up of experts to discuss this key topic with us: 🎙 Sophie in 't Veld, Member of the European Parliament, Renew Europe, Rapporteur of the PEGA report; 🎙 David Kaye, UC Irvine School of Law, Independent Board Chair, Global Network Initiative, former UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Opinion and Expression; 🎙 Anna Buchta, Head of Unit “Policy & Consultation”, European Data Protection Supervisor; 🎙 Iverna McGOWAN, Tech and Human Rights Advisor, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights The session will be moderated by our Acting Director Asha Allen 🗣️ Secure your spot today through the link below 👇 https://lnkd.in/eJM8wfFF

CDT Europe’s EU Tech Policy Brief is out! In this bumper Spring edition, we have all the latest news from our team in Brussels, including: 🔵 The final update and the last chance to register for our high level online event: Exploring Ways Forward to Combat Spyware in the EU. This Wednesday (15/05). Register: https://lnkd.in/eJM8wfFF 🔵 The latest in our series of in-depth explainers on the EU’s mammoth legislation, the EU AI Act, covers privacy and surveillance.  🔵 Our DSA Civil Society Roundtable Event - the 5th in the series - with Open Government Partnership was our biggest yet.  🔵 Our growing team! Read it for this and more from the world of tech and digital policy in the EU and beyond. https://lnkd.in/evs6S_q4 #EUTechPolicy #TechPolicy #DigitalRegulation #AI

Looking forward to partnering with so many great civil society organisations for the Tech and Society Summit in October 👏

Congratulations Alexandra Reeve Givens 🙌 Well deserved recognition of our inspirational President and CEO. Alex is a true advocate for human rights in digital and tech policy and sets the bar high for us.  

📢 Join us next week on 15 May for an online event addressing the aftermath of the Pegasus spyware scandal and its global impact! We’re thrilled to announce a stellar line up of experts to discuss this key topic with us: 🎙 Sophie in 't Veld, Member of the European Parliament, Renew Europe, Rapporteur of the PEGA report; 🎙 David Kaye, UC Irvine School of Law, Independent Board Chair, Global Network Initiative, former UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Opinion and Expression; 🎙 Anna Buchta, Head of Unit “Policy & Consultation”, European Data Protection Supervisor; 🎙 Iverna McGOWAN, Tech and Human Rights Advisor, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights The session will be moderated by our Acting Director Asha Allen 🗣️ Secure your spot today through the link below 👇 https://lnkd.in/eJM8wfFF

🛡️👁️🗨 In the latest instalment of our series on the EU AI Act, our Director Laura Lázaro Cabrera delves into crucial aspects of privacy and surveillance. The Act, while aiming to protect human rights, does not adequately protect against law enforcement overreach  👇 🔍 Concerns arise regarding the Act's exemption for AI systems in national security, potentially enabling mass surveillance under disguise. 🚫 Prohibitions on real-time biometric identification face hurdles with loopholes and exceptions, raising questions about effective privacy protection. Vigilance and proactive measures will be absolutely crucial for effective implementation of the Act! Stay tuned for further insights on the EU AI Act's implications for human rights 👀 🔵 Read the blog here: https://lnkd.in/dEd9Nhsq 🔵 Read the briefing paper here: https://lnkd.in/gB4ArWNP #EUAIAct #Privacy #Surveillance

🛡️👁️🗨 In the latest instalment of our series on the EU AI Act, our Director Laura Lázaro Cabrera delves into crucial aspects of privacy and surveillance. The Act, while aiming to protect human rights, does not adequately protect against law enforcement overreach  👇 🔍 Concerns arise regarding the Act's exemption for AI systems in national security, potentially enabling mass surveillance under disguise. 🚫 Prohibitions on real-time biometric identification face hurdles with loopholes and exceptions, raising questions about effective privacy protection. Vigilance and proactive measures will be absolutely crucial for effective implementation of the Act! Stay tuned for further insights on the EU AI Act's implications for human rights 👀 🔵 Read the blog here: https://lnkd.in/dEd9Nhsq 🔵 Read the briefing paper here: https://lnkd.in/gB4ArWNP #EUAIAct #Privacy #Surveillance

Two weeks ago, we held the biggest yet in our Civil Society Roundtable Series 🎉 The fifth in the series, all of which have been supported by each Presidency of the Council of the European Union since 2022, brought 80 civil society representatives together with institutions and academics. We’ve had time to take stock of such a packed, fruitful and inspiring day 📚 The focus of the event was: taking a multi-stakeholder approach to effective implementation & enforcement of the DSA. And after some scene setting and reflections on the current context of the DSA implementation, with a keynote speech from Jack Hamande, representing the Belgian Presidency of the EU, and panel discussion with our panellists: Bernardo Herman of BIPT - IBPT, Marco Giorello from the European Commission, Tim Hughes from Open Government Partnership and Asha Allen, CDT Europe’s interim director, we got down to the “nuts and bolts” 🔩 Here are a few high-level conclusions from the workshops which took place during the afternoon: 1️⃣ Civil society has a vital role to play in the effective implementation and enforcement of the DSA, but it must be an equitable stakeholder in the process. 2️⃣ The DSA is now seen as a global regulatory ‘trend-setter’ - this means that it is even more vital it is done right. 3️⃣ Transparency over CSO involvement is key - what will the space for collaboration be? What formal mechanisms will be in place? 4️⃣ Key mechanisms & timelines must be clarified.A strong message from civil society coming from last week’s Roundtable was that we are the experts in the room and we’re ready to take a seat at the table! Many thanks to all that joined us for such a collaborative and inspiring day - especially our partners at Open Government Partnership for their ongoing support. Particular thanks to our DSA Civil Society Coordination Group - so active behind the scenes and determined to make a difference 🙌 #DSA #DigitalServicesAct #EUTech #EUTechPolicy #TechRegulation