In the beginning of September, AlgorithmWatch published its new report on the use of automated decision-making technologies in the fight against COVID-19. The report covers 16 European countries.

Homo Digitalis co-founder, Eleftherios Chelioudakis, contributed to the report, covering the situation in Greece.

The report is available here.

A new AlgorithmWatch report entitled “Automating Society II”, which will also cover Greece will soon be made available. Stay tuned!

The joint proposals of 29 organizations focusing on improving transparency in the field of AdTech were published on September 8th. This action was organized on the initiative of the European Partnership for Democracy.

You can find the proposals here.

Following its input to the European Commission in June, Homo Digitalis filed extra proposals in the DSA public consultation

Our organization is very active in the field, since the new legislation will mark important developments in contemporary digital services.

You may read our answers to the Commission’s questionnaire here. You may also read our extra comments here.

European Digital Rights (EDRi) also filed its comments to the European Commission. Homo Digitalis endorsed these comments. EDRi’s input is available here.

On Friday September 4th, Homo Digitalis submitted its written proposals to the Data Protection Committee of the Council of Europe concerning the draft Guidelines it had issued in early June regarding the use of facial recognition technologies.

With its written proposals Homo Digitalis focuses on 3 different topics, namely the relevant databases, impact assessment, and the principles of necessity and proportionality. Also, by submitting our proposals, we explicitly support the views and ideas submitted by the partner organizations Access Now and European Digital Rights (EDRi).

You can read the suggestions we have submitted here.

We remind you that our organization is one out of 10 civil society organizations to have an observer position in the Ad Hoc Committee on Artificial Intelligence of the Council of Europe (CAHAI)

Since September, 1 the platform “My Data Done Right” is available for use in Greece.

The platform intends to help users exercise easily and rapidly their rights under the GDPR.

The platform helps users to exercise the right to access, rectification, erasure and data portability. Homo Digitalis has added more than 150 Greek-based organizations in the platform, enabling Greek users to contact them and exercise their rights. The said organizations include banks, air companies, political parties, clothing companies, supermarkets and many more.

Homo Digitalis is proud to have collaborated with Bits of Freedom, which started the platform in the Netherlands in 2018, in order to bring it to Greece. Apart from the Netherlands and Greece, My Data Done Right is available in Austria, Belgium, Germany, UK, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Romania, Sweden and Serbia.

We warmly thank the members of the Homo Digitalis team, namely Stergios Konstantinou, Konstantinos Kakavoulis, Eleftherios Chelioudakis, Christianna Andreou, Antigoni Logotheti, Dimitris Ntosas, Marina Zacharopoulou and Theodora Firingou.

You may use the platform here.

On August, 31 the Greek Data Protection Authority informed Homo Digitalis that it requested information by the Greek Police regarding its contract for smart policing software. Homo Digitalis had filed a requested to the DPA on March 2020.

The DPA calls the Police to inform it regarding the contract signed with INTRACOM TELECOM. More precisely, it requests the Police to provide for a legal basis for the intended processing, as well as the data retention period, information provided to data subjects, etc.

Moreover, the DPA calls the Police to inform it if it has made a Data Protection Impact Assessment on the consequences of the use of such a software on citizens’ rights. The DPA underlines that a DPIA must be conducted not only prior to the operation of such a software, but also prior to its supply, in order to ensure that  privacy-by design standards are met.

Homo Digitalis and Sarantaporo.gr jointly filed comments to the Draft Greek Telecommunications Code. The Code was open for public consultation by the Ministry of Digital Governance.

The two civil society organizations suggested amendments with a view to create a favourable framework for the development and operation of Wireless Community Networks in Greece.

The two organizations also addressed the Minister of Digital Governance with a letter, congratulating him for the great work, which has been done for the Draft Code. They also underlined that the suggested amendments by the two organizations may provide for an additional solution for internet connectivity in remote areas in Greece. Notably, the suggested amendments are based in the EU Directive being implemented.

The suggested solution is in line with the views of the United Nations and the European Commission.

Our letter is available in Greek here.

Our organization is proud to have become observer member to the CAHAI – Ad hoc Committee on Artificial Intelligence of the Council of Europe.

Under the authority of the Committee of Ministers, the CAHAI is instructed to examine the feasibility and potential elements on the basis of broad multi-stakeholder consultations, of a legal framework for the development, design and application of artificial intelligence, based on the Council of Europe’s standards on human rights, democracy and the rule of law.

The Committee consists of representatives of the 47 Council of Europe members and representatives of states, such as Canada, japan, Mexico, USA, Israel, the Holy See. Furthermore, representatives of other CoE bodies participate in the Committee, as well as representatives of international organizations (including the EU, UNESCO, OECD, OSCE). Finally, representatives of private companies, academia and civil society organizations contribute to the success of the Committee.

Homo Digitalis was accepted as observer-member to the Committee by the end of June.

We are very pleased to have the opportunity to participate in the Committee plenary on 6-8 July, which will take place as a teleconference. Eleftherios Chelioudakis, co-founder of our organization, will represent Homo Digitalis in the meeting.

We would like to warmly thank the members of the Committee for accepting our application unanimously.

On June 26, Mr. Olivier Micol, Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers Director, informed us on the course of our complaint regarding non-compliance of the Greek Data Protection Law (Law 4624/2019) with the EU personal data framework.

The European Commission has carefully reviewed our complaint the Commission services are currently in contact with the Greek authorities to discuss how the LED and the GDPR are implemented in Greece.

If the Commission services will come to the conclusion, after the respective discussion, that the way how the LED and/or the GDPR have been implemented in Greece violates EU data protection law, the Commission has the possibility to launch an infringement procedure against Greece.

You may read the letter by Mr. Micol here.

On February 24, Homo Digitalis and “EKPIZO” Consumers’ Union sent a joint letter to the Greek Prime Minister and all leaders of the parliamentary political parties, requesting the immediate reconsideration of Law 4624/2019 on data protection. However, no action has been taken on the issue yet.