LOW RES MBR ISSUE 36

Malta Business Review
EP/ONLINE
FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS /
JUSTICE AND HOME AFFAIRS
STRONGER PRIVACY RULES FOR
ONLINE COMMUNICATIONS
• EU privacy law to be updated to cover
new communication tools
• Stronger privacy rules for all new
electronic tools
• Ban on cookie walls blocking access to
a website if no consent
MEPS WANT TO STEP UP
PROTECTION FOR CITIZENS USING
TOOLS SUCH AS MESSENGER,
WHATSAPP OR SKYPE, AND OTHER
ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION
SERVICES.
Draft proposals to ensure high standards
of privacy, confidentiality and security in
electronic communications across the
EU were approved by the Civil Liberties
Committee on Thursday. These would apply
to SMS and telephone services, and would
update the EU’s existing e-privacy rules to
cover recently introduced internet-enabled
services such as WhatsApp, Skype, Messenger
and Facebook.
The text, drafted by Marju Lauristin (S&D,
ET) constitutes Parliament’s draft negotiating
mandate for talks with the Council on the
revision of the e-privacy rules. It was passed
by 31 votes to 24, with one abstention.
BANNING “COOKIE WALLS”
MEPs call for a ban on “cookie walls”, which
block access to a website if the person does
not agree to his or her data being used by the
same site.
Snooping on personal devices via cookies or
software updates, or tracking people without
their clear approval through public hotspots
or Wi-Fi in shopping centres, should also be
prohibited, say MEPs.
“Privacy by default” settings should become
standard for all software used for electronic
communications and service providers must
provide for strong encryption, they add.
Consent always needed for any use of
personal data
MEPs want to set strict limits on data
processing and insist that data should only be
used for the purpose of which consent has
been given by the individual.
So-called “meta-data”, which can give
information about numbers called, websites
visited, geographical location or the time and
date a call and other sensitive data, should be
treated as confidential and never passed on
to third parties.
QUOTE
Parliament’s lead MEP Marju Lauristin
(S&D, ET) said: “E-privacy can give a great
competitive advantage to European
companies and help them to create a real
European model for digital economy, with
high quality services, consumer trust and free
choice”.
“E-privacy can give a great
competitive advantage to
European companies and help
them to create a real European
model for digital economy, with
high quality services, consumer
trust and free choice”.
NEXT STEPS
The full Parliament will be asked at its plenary
session in Strasbourg next week to formally
confirm the committee decision to enter
into negotiations with the Council. But the
Council must agree on its own negotiating
mandate before talks can start.
QUICK FACTS
The current directive on privacy in the
electronic communication sector was last
updated in 2009. The proposal for a revision,
presented by the Commission on 10 January
2017, replaces the directive with a regulation
and brings the rules into line with the General
Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which will
become applicable in May 2018.
EU e-privacy rules aim to ensure the
fundamental right to privacy and protection
of personal data as enshrined in the Treaties.
Creditline: Rikke Uldall, EP Press Service & EP,
Malta
MBR
46