The Internet is broken – Bringing back trust in the Internet – PL 03 2014

Session title

The Internet is broken - Bringing back trust in the Internet

Session subject

• Why is the Internet broken? Personal data collection, tracking and surveillance, security, human rights.
• What can and should Europe do in order to restore users' trust in the Internet?
• What could be the role of different stakeholders in this respect?

Session description

Personal data of Internet users are collected and online activities are traced in order to deliver a better response, better service, better experience. Recent revelations of mass surveillance have shown that governments undertake Internet surveillance activities against their own citizens as nationals of foreign countries. They justify such surveillance by the need to ensure security and counter criminal and terrorist activities. Such tracking and surveillance actions undermine human rights, especially when it comes to privacy, personal data protection and freedom of expression. As a consequence, Internet users have lost their trust in using the Internet as a free medium of communications and as a tool for exercising their rights. What can and should Europe do in order to restore users’ trust in the Internet? How can policy makers, the business sector, the technical community and the civil society in Europe contribute to bring back trust in the Internet and ensure that privacy is protected and the right to control our own personal data can be effectively exercised? How to ensure a proper balance between the legitimate interests of business and governments, on the one hand, and the rights and interests of Internet users, on the other hand? What are the solutions for rebuilding trust: new or enhanced regulatory approaches meant to ensure the effective protection of human rights in the digital society? new technical mechanisms and applications meant to ensure that each and every one can control their personal data online? more education and awareness raising to empower users and give them the means to better protect their privacy online? And what about jurisdictional issues – how to ensure that the rights granted by European legal frameworks are protected beyond virtual European borders when personal data is flowing frontierless across the optic fibre or vanishing in the clouds ?

People

• Focal points: Sophie Kwasny, Council of Europe and Sorina Teleanu, Parliamentary assistant, Parliament of Romania
• Live moderator: Veronica Crețu, President, Open Government Institute, Republic of Moldova
• Rapporteur: Lee Hibbard, Council of Europe
• Remote participation moderator: Sorina Teleanu
• Digital facilitator: Anya
• Panelists/speakers:
• Jan-Philipp Albrecht, MEP, European Parliament
• Jacob Appelbaum, The Tor Project
• Cornelia Kutterer, Director of EU Institutional Affairs, Microsoft
• Ben Scott, Program Director, European Digital Agenda, Stiftung Neue Verantwortung
• Matthias Traimer, Federal Chancellery, Austria

Format of the session

Plenary. Short introductory remarks by each speaker (based on specific questions tailored to each stakeholder group represented), followed by discussions with the audience.

Protocol. Discussions

See the discussion tab on the upper left side of this page

Live stream / remote participation

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Live transcripts

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Final report from working group

PDF (approx. 2 weeks after event)

Pictures from working group

Link

Session twitter hashtag

Hashtag: #eurodig_pl3