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International Civil Society Coalition To Discuss Global Privacy Standards

Urdu Translation of The Public Voice Press Release: International Civil Society Coalition To Discuss Global Privacy Standards

European Commissioner Calls for Privacy Safeguards for Internet

Commissioner Viviane Reding, head of European policy for Information Society and Media, reaffirmed support for an open Internet and called for new initiatives for "the protection of privacy and personal data in the online environment." Reding cited three commercial developments that require close attention: social networking, behavioural advertising and RFID "smart chips." EPIC will be hosting an international conference on privacy protection in Madrid, in conjunction with the annual meeting of the Data Protection Commissioners, that will explore these topics and other related issues.

ICANN Issues Affirmation of Commitment, Seeks Comments on WHOIS

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), the corporation that coordinates the assignment of domain names to Internet Protocol addresses, has signed an affirmation of commitment with the Department of Commerce. ICANN also commits to enforcing its existing WHOIS policy, subject to applicable laws. The WHOIS database, originally intended to allow network administrators to find and fix problems with minimal hassle to maintain the stability of the Internet, now exposes domain name registrants' personally identifiable information to spammers, stalkers, criminal investigators, and copyright enforcers. ICANN's preliminary report shows that about 15 to 25 percent of domain names have been registered in a manner that limits the amount of personal information available to the public through WHOIS queries. A call for public comments on WHOIS is open until November 6, 2009.

A civil szervezetek nemzetközi szövetsége megvitatja a magánélet védelmének globális normáit

Madrid, 2009. november 3.

A világ legszélesebb civil társadalmi szövetsége, a „Public Voice” 2009. november 3-án Madridban (Spanyolország) tartandó konferenciáján vitát rendez „A privacy globális normái a globális világban” címmel. A konferenciát az adatvédelmi biztosok 31. éves nemzetközi konferenciájához kapcsolódóan rendezik meg.

Az egyetemi szféra, a fogyasztói és a digitális jogok, valamint a munka világa prominens képviselői és szakértői vitatják meg köztisztviselőkkel és az üzleti szektorral, hogy miként lehet növelni az adatvédelmi tudatosságot a globális közösségben, és hogyan lehet elősegíteni a civil társadalom részvételét azokban a döntéshozatali folyamatokban, amelyek jobb adatvédelmi és magánélet-védelmi normák globális elfogadásához vezetnek.

Internet Governance Forum - United States


The first IGF-USA will take place on October 2, 2009 at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The IGF-USA is a multistakeholder effort to raise awareness about Internet governance issues and to contribute to awareness about the Internet Governance Forum. IGF-USA is a one day forum to engage civil society, government, technologists/researchers, industry and academia in discussions about topics that are being deliberated at a global level regarding governance of the Internet, including management of critical Internet resources, privacy, cyber security, access, openness/freedom of expression, child online safety, capacity building and development. At the IGF-USA, like the IGF itself, all parties participate on an equal footing, and through identifying and discussing issues, participants help to broaden understanding and identify possible best practices that can inform global decisions that affect the Internet.

  • When?: Friday, October 2, 2009
  • Where?: Center for Strategic and International Studies, 1800 K Street, NW, Washington DC. The CSIS location is one block from the Farragut West station on the Orange and Blue lines. Take the 18th Street exit and walk north to the corner of 18th and K streets. CSIS is also just a few blocks away from the Farragut North station on the Red line.

Download the program here

On One Web Day: International Civil Society Coalition reaffirmed its commitment to the Civil Society Seoul Declaration on the Future on Internet

Civil Society participants of The Public Voice coalition at the OECD Ministerial Meeting on the Future on the Internet affirmed "that the policy goals for the Future of the Internet should be considered within the broader framework of protection of human rights, the promotion of democratic institutions, and the provision of affordable and non-discriminatory access to advanced communication infrastructures and services. Economic growth should be for the many and not the few. The Internet should be available to all."

Weltweite Koalition der Zivilgesellschaft diskutiert globale Standards zum Schutz der Privatsphäre

‘Public Voice’, die größte weltweite Koalition der Zivilgesellschaft, wird “Globale Standards zum Schutz der Privatsphäre in einer globalen Welt” im Rahmen einer eigenen Konferenz am 3. November 2009 in Madrid, Spanien, diskutieren. Die Konferenz findet im zeitlichen Zusammenhang mit der 31. Internationalen Konferenz der Datenschutzbeauftragten statt.

Prominente Experten und Vertreter von Hochschulen, Bürgerrechtsbewegungen, Verbraucherschutzorganisationen und Gewerkschaften diskutieren mit Entscheidungsträgern aus Politik und Wirtschaft, wie der Schutz der Privatsphäre in einer globalen Gemeinschaft unter angemessener Beteiligung der Zivilgesellschaft an den Entscheidungsprozessen verbessert werden kann.

世界各地非政府组织齐聚一堂,共商全球隐私权保护标准

全世界最大的非政府组织联盟-公众之声-将于2009年11月3日在西班牙马德里,时值第三十一届国际个人数据与隐私权保护专员会议之际,共商“全球隐私权保护标准”的议题。
来自学界、消费者保护、数字权利保护、劳工权利保护等领域的重要活动家和权威将与各国政府官员和商界领袖讨论,如何在全球范围提高公众的隐私权保护意识,如何促进非政府组织参与决策过程,以便更完善的隐私权和个人数据保护标准在全球的施行。
会议将首先回顾隐私权和人权保护在近期的发展以及世界上主要的隐私权保护运动。欧洲议会副主席拉布尼蒂斯先生将受邀对近期的发展进行评论。

세계적인 시민 사회 연합 전지구적 사생활보호 표준을 논의 마드리드, 2009년 11월 3일

전 세계 최대 규모의 시민 사회 연합인 The Public Voice는 2009년 11월 3일 스페인 마드리드에서 개최되는 컨퍼런스 에서 “전 지구적인 포괄적 사생활보호 표준”을 논의한다. 이 컨퍼런스는 제 31차 연간 데이터 보호와 사생활 위원회의 국제 컨퍼런스와 함께 개최된다.

학계, 소비자, 디지털 권리와 노동계를 대표하는 전문적인 대
변자들과 전문가들은 공무원들과 기업들과 함께 어떻게 세계
공동체가 사생활에 대한 인식을 증가시킬수 있는지에 대해 논
의할 것이다; 그리고 전세계적으로 더 나은 사생활 보호와 데
이터 보호 표준의 채택을 위한 의사 결정과정에 시민 사회의 참여를 촉진 시킬 수 있는지에 대해서도 논의할 것이다.

European Dialogue on Internet Governance

European actors interested in Internet Governance issues will meet on 14-15 September at the European Dialogue on Internet Governance (EuroDIG) in preparation of the 4th Internet Governance Forum that will be held in Sharm El Sheikh in November 2009. This Dialogue intends to highlight in particular the specific European approach to the interplay between security, privacy, and openness: "they will not be discussed as concepts that only conflict with each other and therefore need to be balanced; but rather as principles that can be fostered simultaneously and even mutually reinforce each other." The main focus will be put on identifying - based on European experience - situations and solutions that reflect and respond to these issues and challenges."

Privacy Compliance for Facebook, Some Changes Made

In mid-July, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada released a Report of "Findings into the Complaint Filed by the Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic" against Facebook, Inc. The complaint was filed by the CIPPIC under the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act and comprised 24 allegations ranging over 12 distinct subjects. These included default privacy settings, collection and use of users' personal information for advertising purposes, disclosure of users' personal information to third-party application developers, and collection and use of non-users' personal information.

US Privacy Groups Call for New Safeguards for Online Advertising

A coalition of consumer organizations is urging the United States Congress to adopt new legislation for behavioral tracking and ad targeting. Led by the Center for Digital Democracy, the groups say that self-regulation has failed to protect privacy. The consumer groups have issued Principles on Online Behavioral Tracking and Targeting and an overview. Earlier this year, the FTC recommended new principles for online advertising but stopped short of recommending legislation.

European Privacy Seal Awarded to Online Ad Service and Video Anonymizer

The European Privacy Seal (EuroPriSe) has been awarded to two privacy services, following a review by privacy experts and an independent body. The first EuroPriSe was awarded to German company nugg.ad's Predictive Targeting Networking service, an online advertising service that follows principles of data avoidance and minimization by not maintaining multi-website tracking profiles, deleting IP address records, and offering a blocking cookie for users to opt out. The second certification was awarded to Austrian company Kiwi Security's KiwiVision Privacy Protector, a software module that performs real-time anonymization of video data by obfuscating faces, license plates, and other identifying imagery.

EPIC Forces Disclosure of Government Contracts with Social Media Companies, Privacy Terms Missing

In response to an EPIC Freedom of Information Act Request, the Government Services Administration released several contracts between the federal government and web 2.0 companies, including agreements with Blip.tv, Blist, Google (YouTube), Yahoo (Flickr), and MySpace.

On April 30, 2009, EPIC filed a FOIA request with the GSA requesting (1) all agreements between federal agencies and social networking services, cloud computing services, and/or vendors of other similar services; (2) all records, including memoranda and legal opinions, concerning the application of the Privacy Act of 1974 and the Freedom of Information Act to social networking services, cloud computing services, and/or other similar services, and (3) all instructions, policies and/or procedures concerning the collection, storage, transmission, and use of information about users of social networking or cloud computing services by federal agencies.

Latin America: Memorandum on Protection of personal data and privacy in online social networks


On July 27 - 28, 2009, the Uruguayan Ministry of Education and Culture, Agencia para el Desarrollo del Gobierno de Gestión Electrónica y la Sociedad de la Información y del Conocimiento (AGESIC), and Instituto para la Justicia organized the conference: "Rights, Teens and Social Networks on the Internet" in Montevideo, Uruguay.

At the Seminar, the Memorandum on Protection of personal data and privacy in online social networks (Memorandum sobre la protección de datos personales y la vida privada en las redes sociales en Internet, en particular de niños, niñas y adolescentes) was adopted. The document set several recommendations to the various stakeholders in Latin America requesting the protection of personal data and privacy in online social networks, particularly the privacy of children and adolescents.

Social Network Privacy Study Reports Serious Concerns


A Cambridge University study covering 45 social networks has reported serious concerns about the extent such sites fail to keep users' personal information private. While inaccurate privacy policies and inaccessible guidelines have been reported before, the Cambridge report provides numerical statistics to confirm their scope. The researchers found faults with the amount of personal information required to be handed over, the standards of encryption protocols, default privacy settings, and confusing user-interfaces. Testing each site against 260 criteria, the researchers examined features such as log-in procedures and configuration controls. The study concluded that "the naive application of utility maximization theory fails to capture all the intricacies of the market for privacy in social networking." The report also stated that "a major problem was the lack of accessible information for users, encouraged by the sites' strong incentives to limit privacy salience as part of the privacy communication game: the data suggests that sites may have evolved specifically to communicate differently to users with different levels of privacy concern."

Recently, the Canadian Privacy Commissioner held that although Facebook had taken some steps to address privacy, more safeguards were necessary. Also, Article 29 Working Party released an Opinion of Social Networking Sites

Working Groups for eLAC2010


eLAC is a regionally concerted strategy that conceives of Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) as instruments for economic development and social inclusion. eLAC is a strategy with a long-term vision (until 2015) in line with the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and those of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS). There are 13 Working Groups under eLAC2010, which group regional experts from various sectors to research and develop joint initiatives related to specific eLAC goals. Each group is led by one country, which appoints the group's coordinator.

The list of all the working groups are available at E-LAC's website. Working Groups use a virtual platform to centralize information, upload documents and hold chats or meetings in cyberspace. To participate in a working group, you have to contact your National Focal Point, or the Information Society Programme at UN-ECLAC (socinfocepal.org).

Consumer Privacy and Online Marketing: Market Trends and Policy Developments

BEUC, the European Consumers' Organisation, is organising this first multi-stakeholder forum that aims to bring together all stakeholders with an interest in online marketing and consumer privacy. This event will offer a unique opportunity to debate and reflect with all interested parties on future policies on online marketing and privacy and to feed into the European policy approach in these fields. The full program is available online.

APEC Privacy Framework

The 21 APEC economies (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) commenced development in 2003 of Asia-Pacific privacy standard, and in 2004 APEC Ministers endorsed an APEC Privacy Framework, adding an implementation section in 2005. The principles in the framework are weaker than those in the OECD Guidelines. It does not require any specific method of national enforcement, such as legislation, nor any means of collective assessment of adherence to its standards. It neither prohibits nor requires data export restrictions.

The Public Voice: Global Privacy Standards in a Global World (2009)

A civil society conference, entitled "Global Privacy Standards in a Global World" will be held on 3 November 2009 in Madrid, Spain, in conjunction with the 31st Annual International Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commissioners. This one-day event organized by The Public Voice Coalition aims to "Review the privacy developments of the past year and release the current edition of the Privacy and Human Rights report;" "Promote civil society participation in decisions concerning the protection of privacy as both a fundamental human right and an essential facilitator for a global economy;" "Develop global privacy standards in a global world," and "Review and coordinate civil society involvement in privacy discussions in regional and other global arenas such as the United Nations Internet Governance Forum, The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, among others.

Some of the issues to be addressed at the civil society conference will include: A country by-country privacy overview: Are governments getting better at protecting citizens' data or is the surveillance society expanding?; Examples and experience sharing of privacy and data protection rights advocacy around the world; What can be achieved and lessons to be learned; Your Data in the Cloud: What if it Rains?"; Newest emerging issues and their implications for consumer digital rights: Cloud Computing, Search and Privacy and Google Book Settlement; "Freedom of Movement: Bridges, Channels or Walls": Transborder Data Flow in the public and private Sector: From Passenger Name Records and financial transactions to Outsourcing Personal Data. When should data flows be facilitated and when should they be blocked?. A panel on "Towards Global Privacy Standards?" will also be held. The panel will discuss the key elements necessary to be included in a global privacy framework. For example, the right to access to his or her personal data as a key element to empower any citizen to exercise his or her right to control their own personal information.

Privacy: Today is Tomorrow

The 31st International Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commissioners, hosted by the Spanish Data Protection Authority, will be held on November 4-6, 2009, in Madrid, Spain. The annual event draws Privacy Commissioners from around the world, as well as a host of experts from academia, civil society and the private sector. The theme of this year's conference is "Privacy: Today is Tomorrow."

The core issues at the Privacy Commissioners' conference will be the education of minors, social networks and new technologies and its impact in terms of data protection and privacy; data protection as a strategic element in the scope of business and international data transfers in a globalized world. The conference will also address new advertising and sales techniques, together with their incidence in the field of data protection. The security - privacy binomial is another issue that will be discussed, for instance, the proliferation of video-surveillance devices, and biometrics.

Making the future of the Internet economy work for citizens, consumers and workers (2008)


On June 16, 2008, more than 150 participants from 15 countries gathered in Seoul, South Korea, for the Civil Society - Labor Forum "Making the Future of the Internet Economy Work for Citizens, Consumers, and Workers. The event was organized by the Public Voice coalition, the Trade Union Advisory Committee, and the OECD Civil Society Reference group, which includes the Association for Progressive Communications, the Canadian Internet Policy and Public interest Clinic, Consumers Korea, the European Digital Rights Initiative, the Electronic Privacy Information Center, the Internet Governance Project, and the Trans Atlantic Consumer Dialogue.

The Public Voice in Emerging Market Economies (2001)

On January 15, 2001, the public voice coalition organized the event: The Public Voice in Emerging Market Economies" in Dubai, United Arab Emirates in conjunction with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development conference on Electronic Commerce. More information is available online.

The Public Voice in Electronic Commerce (1999)


On October 11t, 1999, the Public Voice coalition organized the event The Public Voice in Electronic Commerce. The organizing committee were conformed by EPIC and IRIS. The event was hosted by TUAC, and sponsored by GILC with the help of TACD.

PIR launches campaign to help .org domain name holders protect the value of their .org domains


The Public Interest Registry (PIR) has announced a new international public awareness campaign aimed at protecting .ORG domain name holders from the potentially damaging consequences of allowing their .ORG domain names to expire. The campaign, called "protectyour.ORG: Preserving the Value of Your .ORG Domain", seeks to educate registrants about the value of .ORG domains˜, even those that are not currently being used as Web sites. It offers steps for locating, managing, consolidating, and securing domain names in order to reduce the potential for problems that may occur when domain names lapse either intentionally or because the registrant was unaware that a name had expired. More information»

 
 

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European Commission: Consultation on Personal Data Protection

Consultation due on December 31, 2009

 

Events

CALENDAR FOR CIVIL SOCIETY NETWORKING

This is a listing of events which may be useful for civil society to participate, connect and network on issues relating to information and communication technologies and policies.

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Past Events

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OECD 2008 Ministerial Meeting on the Future of the Internet Economy

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Civil Society Privacy Conference
Montreal
Sept. 25, 2007

OECD Participative Web Forum
Ottawa
Oct. 3, 2007

Past Public Events

Cape Town Conference »

Wroclaw Conference »

Buenos Aires Conference »

Participation in the World Summit on the Information Society Internet Governance Caucus »

Civil Society Background Paper


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