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<span style="font-size:9pt">3</span>
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European Regional Bureau Newsletter: 24 August 2019 – 30 August 2019
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<span style="font-family:'Hind Light';color:#3a82e4">Internet Access</span>
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<span style="font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">Global: France and India to work shoulder to shoulder in securing cyberspace</span>
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<span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">Last week, French President Emmanuel Macron and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi signed a bilateral statement in which both countries affirmed their commitment to securing an open, safe, and peaceful cyberspace.</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">Adhering to the UN Framework on cyber norms, the</span> <a href="https://pib.gov.in/Pressreleaseshare.aspx?PRID=1582728&utm_source=POLITICO.EU&utm_campaign=04ac663d9f-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_08_27_05_02&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_10959edeb5-04ac663d9f-190379937"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">declaration</span></a><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'"> will strive to “prevent malicious activities, undertake immediate corrective response, mitigate their potential impact and identify their causes.”</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">Paris and New Delhi agreed to maintain closer cooperation in areas such as AI regulation, information manipulation, protection of personal information, and digital governance, among others.</span> <p style="text-align:justify">
<span style="font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">EU: The European Commission sets high connectivity objectives for 2025</span>
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<span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">The European Commission</span> <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/connectivity-european-gigabit-society"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">published</span></a><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'"> a brochure named “Connectivity for a European Gigabit Society,” which provides an overview of the current European connectivity landscape and outlines the Commission’s future objectives associated with Internet connectivity.</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">The current figures demonstrate that, at present, 99% of all EU households are covered by at least one 4G mobile operator, while in rural areas 4G coverage increased from 38% in 2014 to 96% in 2019.</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">The Commission is determined to provide access to mobile data connectivity to all areas across the EU by 2025, with 5G coverage expanding into all urban areas and major terrestrial transport paths.</span> <p style="text-align:justify">
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<span style="font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">EU: MEP believes GDPR could hinder the development of AI-related technologies</span>
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<span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">Eva Kaili, a Greek Socialist MEP,</span> <a href="https://www.euractiv.com/section/5g/interview/gdpr-could-obstruct-ai-development-mep-says/"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">stated</span></a><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'"> last week that despite its achievement in safeguarding consumer data from being processed without consumers’ consent, the GDPR contains aspects that might obstruct the development of self-learning algorithmic systems.</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">AI is “a cornerstone of the EU’s future strategy” whose progress largely depends on the availability of datasets, Kaili highlighted, pointing out that in order to keep innovation intact, lawmakers should not over-regulate AI.</span> <p style="text-align:justify">
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<span style="font-family:'Hind Light';color:#3a82e4">Trust</span>
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<span style="font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">Global: Stakeholders around the world are calling for a ban on facial recognition</span>
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<span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">Kate Crawford, the co-director and co-founder of the AI Now Institute at New York University,</span> <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-02514-7"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">alarmed</span></a><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'"> that governments need to stop the use of facial recognition before a proper regulation and sufficient safeguards are put in place.</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">The urge comes amid growing concerns among US lawmakers and a debate on a legislation that could</span> <a href="https://www.politico.com/newsletters/morning-tech/2019/08/22/lawmakers-want-limits-on-facial-recognition-funds-472395"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">limit the funding</span></a><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'"> dedicated to facial recognition technologies.</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">In Europe, where watchdogs have called for a public debate on the use of facial recognition, law enforcement authorities have started using the technology for the identification of individuals in large crowds.</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">The French City of Nice – which used facial recognition during one of its famous carnivals – called on the French Government to define national rules for the use of facial recognition, which is expected to be deployed in the 2024 Olympic Games.</span> <p style="text-align:justify">
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<span style="font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">EU: Germany pushes for a new European cloud service “Gaia-X”</span>
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<span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">Germany’s Federal Minister of Economics, Peter Altmaier,</span> <a href="https://www.financial-world.org/news/news/economy/3046/german-economy-minister-plans-a-european-cloud-service-gaiax/"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">announced</span></a><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'"> that his country is working towards the establishment of an EU-wide cloud service called “Gaia-X”.</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">The announcement comes as several German and European businesses have called for a highly secure data infrastructure which would improve the welfare of EU industries.</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">Meetings with stakeholders prior to the official launch will be held in the coming weeks, yet it still remains unclear whether “Gaia-X” will be a state-controlled establishment or an independent entity focused exclusively on EU data infrastructure.</span> <p style="text-align:justify">
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<span style="font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">EU: Member States to draft a stricter 5G regime</span>
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<span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">Amid American efforts to pressure allies to impose sanctions on Chinese tech giant Huawei, by October 31, the EU Cybersecurity Agency has</span> <a href="http://www.mondaq.com/unitedstates/x/840016/Security/Consumer+IoT+Products+Governments+Opening+The+Doors+On+Cybersecurity+Regulation"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">to complete</span></a><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'"> – based on national capitals’ feedback – a joint review on Member States’ threat exposure.</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">By the end of 2019, the review will result in a so-called toolbox that could provide a justification for harder measures against foreign companies, which could potentially include the establishment of an EU-wide framework on 5G security.</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">A German examination of its own 5G network security had previously pointed out that EU countries are mainly concerned about interference from foreign state and non-state hackers which target confidential and strategic information.</span> <p style="text-align:justify">
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<span style="font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">EU: Facebook faces privacy questions in Europe</span>
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<span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">In a case which underlines the growing trend towards human surveillance of private companies, US tech giant Facebook</span> <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/facebook-privacy-audio-chats-investigation/"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">admitted</span></a><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'"> to the Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC) that the personal information of 48 EU users was affected by an artificial intelligence transcription on their Messenger audio chats.</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">As the issue occurred in 14 EU/EEA countries, national data protection authorities could find themselves capable of investigating whether their citizens were affected or not, meaning that Facebook could potentially face up to 14 probes. In addition to Germany and Ireland, the list of countries affected include the UK, Belgium, Slovakia, Italy, Sweden, Cyprus, Lithuania, France, Ireland, Greece, Denmark, and Austria.</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">Germany seems to be taking a tougher stance, as the Hamburg data protection authority</span> <a href="https://www.politico.eu/pro/hamburg-data-regulator-investigates-facebook-audio-transcribing/"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">has opened</span></a><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'"> an investigation into the case: only 5 out of the affected users were German, yet the authority stated that more users could have been affected by the audio transcription.</span> <p style="text-align:justify">
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<span style="font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">EU: The Commission initiates a debate between platforms and rights holders</span>
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<span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">On 28 August, the European Commission (EC)</span> <a href="https://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_MEX-19-5490_en.htm"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">opened</span></a><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'"> a call for expressions of interest to take part in a discussion on the application of the Copyright Directive’s Article 17, which deals with the use of online content by content-sharing service providers.</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">The EC wants to hear the views of all relevant parties involved and find a practical solution for the application of Article 17, especially regarding the use of unauthorized content by online-sharing platforms.</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">The first discussion, taking place on 15 October, aims to collect and map existing information and best practices on the use of copyright-protected content by online platforms in coordination with rights holders, which will contribute to the progress made in future meetings throughout 2020.</span> <p style="text-align:justify">
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<span style="font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">EU: Microsoft introduces a new Germany-based Cloud Service</span>
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<span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">On August 28, Microsoft announced a new version of its cloud computing service, which will allow German customers’ data to be stored on servers located in Germany, will be introduced.</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">In a recent press release, the US tech giant</span> <a href="https://news.microsoft.com/de-de/microsoft-eroeffnet-neue-cloud-rechenzentrumsregionen-in-deutschland/"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">stated</span></a><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'"> that the “new cloud regions combine high global standards with additional German security requirements and certificates.”</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">The service launch comes amid</span> <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/german-privacy-watchdog-says-amazon-cloud-vulnerable-to-us-snooping/"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">increasing concerns</span></a><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'"> by European watchdogs and lawmakers regarding the growing dependency of Europe on the cloud computing services offered by a small number of foreign countries.</span> <p style="text-align:justify">
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<span style="font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">Croatia: Many Croats have never used the Internet, a survey reveals</span>
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<span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">A survey conducted by the Croatian Institute for Economy</span> <a href="https://www.euractiv.com/section/digital/news/digital-brief-how-to-deal-with-a-problem-like-artificial-intelligence/"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">revealed</span></a><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'"> last week that 21% of Croatian citizens have never used the Internet, while only 27% of the population makes online purchases – compared to the 50% EU average. As for the use of Internet in the business sector, numbers also remain quite low, with only 73% of Croatian companies having an official website.</span> <p style="text-align:justify">
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<span style="font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">France: Paris expects social media platforms to sign a hate speech pledge</span>
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<span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">Although social media companies did not sign the “Charter for an Open, Free, and Safe Internet” during the G7 Summit at Biarritz, French authorities</span> <a href="https://www.euractiv.com/section/media4eu/news/france-says-social-media-platforms-will-still-sign-hate-speech-pledge/"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light';text-decoration:underline;color:#0563c1">are still optimistic</span></a><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'"> that social media companies would do so.</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">Although the White House has objected the signing of the charter by American tech giants Google, Snapchat, and Facebook, French Junior Minister for Digital Industry, Cedric O, stated that there is “no doubt on the fact that the social networks will sign the pledge.”</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">In Washington, a White House official stated that the Government had not pressed companies to not sign, pointing out that it still evaluates the Charter, which, in the official’s view, “certainly has its merits.”</span> <p style="text-align:justify">
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<span style="font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">Sweden: Stockholm to introduce new 5G security checks</span>
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<span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">A</span> <a href="https://www.regeringen.se/pressmeddelanden/2019/08/okad-sakerhet-i-framtidens-mobilnat/"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">newly-proposed law</span></a><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'"> on 5G security was introduced by the Swedish Government on August 29.</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">The legislation will</span> <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/politico-pro-cyber-insights-ericsson-in-poland-chinas-business-surveillance-banks-and-data/"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">introduce</span></a><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'"> security checks, performed by the country’s telecom regulator, on companies whose 5G services could pose a threat to the country’s national security.</span> <span></span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:'Hind Light'">It is expected that the new piece of legislation will come into power on December 1, 2019.</span> <p class="header" style="text-align:right" awml:style="header">
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