Google Streetview

According to the latest UK ICO press release on Google Streetview:

Google's Street View includes a facility which allows vehicle registration marks and faces to be blurred. Individuals who feel that an image does identify them (and are unhappy with this) should contact Google direct to get the image removed. Individuals who have raised concerns with Google about their image being included - and who do not think they have received a satisfactory response - can complain to the [UK] ICO.

See also:

• BBC Press clip: Call to "shut down" Street View, 24 March 2009

• Art. 29 Working Party's Opinion on Personal Data

2nd Privacy OS Conference

The 2nd Privacy OS Conference will be held in Berlin, 1-3 April 2009. More details of the Conference can be found here. A brief background of PrivacyOS:

About PrivacyOS

PrivacyOS is a European project aimed at bringing together industry, SMEs, government, academia and civil society to foster development of privacy infrastructures for Europe and is coordinated by the Unabhängiges Landeszentrum für Datenschutz Schleswig-Holstein (ULD), which is also the office of the Privacy Commissioner of the German State of Schleswig Holstein. The general objectives of PrivacyOS are to create a long-term collaboration in the thematic network and establish collective interfaces with other EU projects. Participants exchange research and best practices, as well as develop strategies and joint projects following four core policy goals: Awareness-rising, enabling privacy on the Web, fostering privacy-friendly Identity Management, and stipulating research.

Further information can be found at http://www.privacyos.eu/ .

Phorm and Websites

In the latest saga on Phorm and websites, according to Beeb:

"Seven of the UK's biggest web firms have been urged to opt out of a controversial ad-serving system. Phorm - aka Webwise - profiles users' browsing habits and serves up adverts based on which sites they visit. In an open letter, the Open Rights Group (ORG) has asked the firms to block Phorm's attempts to profile their sites, to thwart the profiling system. Before now, Phorm has defended its technology saying that it does not break data interception la ws. Legal view Chief privacy officers at Microsoft, Google/Youtube, Facebook, AOL/Bebo, Yahoo, Amazon and Ebay have been sent copies of the letter signed the digital rights campaign group and anti-phorm campaigners."

Open Rights Group has more on this.

• BBC: Big websites urged to avoid Phorm

Art. 29 Working Party Opinion on E-Privacy Directive

According to SCL, the Art. 29 Working Party has issued its third opinion on proposals amending the Directive on Privacy and Electronic Communications 2002/58/EC. More from SCL:

In a further official Opinion on the e-Privacy Directive, dated 10 February and now available online, the Article 29 Working Party has emphasised some of its concerns about the impending e-Privacy Directive. While much of the Opinion retreads old ground, the tone of the comments on the data breach notification aspects of the Directive is arresting.

The Working Party believes that: ‘an extension of personal data breach notifications to Information Society Services is necessary given the ever increasing role these services play in the daily lives of European citizens, and the increasing amounts of personal data processed by these services. Online transactions including access to e-banking services, private sector medical records and online shopping are few examples of services that may be subject to personal data breaches causing significant risks to a large number of European citizens. Limiting the scope of these obligations to publicly available electronic communications services would only affect a very limited number of stakeholders and thus would significantly reduce the impact of personal data breach notifications as a means to protect individuals against risks such as identity theft, financial loss, loss of business or employment opportunities and physical harm.’

• Art. 29 Working Party on Proposals amending the Directive on Privacy and Electronic Communications 2002/58/EC (pdf)

• Bruce Schneier's view on personal data breach notification laws

UPDATE: In a further development of proposed data breach notification laws, according to Out-law, the Council of Ministers have rejected plans to expand the scope of the European Union security breach law beyond telecoms companies. More from Out-Law.