Statements from Homo Digitalis in an article by Reporters United, Investigate Europe & EfSyn on the AI Act
Following the investigation and related revelations carried out last week by Reporters United, Investigate Europe, and EfSyn regarding the trilateral meetings on the AI Act and the negative stance of the Greek government on the security safeguards for biometric identification at a later stage, today in a new report, journalist Εurydice Bersi highlights how various state bodies have been systematically violating for years the security safeguards that European data protection legislation provides for the artificial intelligence systems already in use in our country.
We sincerely thank the journalist for her interest in our related actions and for the opportunity to provide some brief comments on the challenges we have identified and the lack of compliance that has been evident over time. Our statements were represented by Eleftherios Chelioudakis.
In fact, as part of the journalists’ investigation, a request for access to information has already been submitted, calling on the Greek government to disclose the documents with its positions on the trilateral meetings!
You can read the related article and their detailed investigation here.
Open Letter to the President of the European Commission to Stand Up Against Big Tech Companies
Over 40 civil society organizations, across the EU and the US, have an urgent message for the European Commission and President Ursula von der Leyen. Now is the time to stand up to the bullying by Big Tech companies and their allies in the Trump administration.
Europe must commit to strong enforcement of the DSA, DMA regulations, and other digital laws to protect people, our democracy, and our economy!
Read our open letter here.
Invitation to Press Conference: DEMOCRACY WITH NO AIR: The State of the Rule of Law in Greece Today
Illegal pushbacks, police violence, Pylos shipwreck, wiretapping scandal, Tempi train crash, absence of accountability and delivery of justice, poor law-making, “omnibus” legislation, constant and irrelevant legislative amendments, shrinking press freedom, attacks and lawsuits against journalists, concentration of media ownership, state breaches of personal data, corruption, lack of transparency in gifts to political figures and ministerial staff…
These are just some of the critical issues affecting the Rule of Law in Greece today. At a time when authoritarian politics, the re-election of Donald Trump, the rise of the far-right, growing social inequality, the dominance of populism in public discourse and attacks on human rights cast a dark shadow over democracy.
In light of these developments and the ongoing weakening of institutions in Greece, Greek Civil Society leads a pressing fight to safeguard the Rule of Law and to strengthen transparency and accountability.
Independent organisations Greek Council for Refugees (GCR), Hellenic League for Human Rights (HLHR), HIAS Greece, Homo Digitalis, Refugee Support Aegean (RSA), Reporters United, Solomon, and Vouliwatch, submitted for a third consecutive year a joint report to the European Commission on the Rule of Law in Greece in 2024, as part of the annual monitoring of national systems.
We demand a clear shift in the European Commission’s approach, focusing not on “commitments” or “intentions” of the state but on an accurate depiction of the situation in the country. Systematic violations of fundamental principles of the Rule of Law cannot be treated as isolated incidents.
We invite you to the Press Conference, which will take place on Tuesday 4 February at 11:00 a.m. at the Athens Bar Association. During the event, we will present our contribution and publish the report we submitted to the European Commission.
SPEAKERS
A welcome address will be delivered by the Vice President of the Athens Bar Association, Alexandros Mantzoutsos.
The report will be presented by:
Stefanos Loukopoulos | Vouliwatch
Minos Mouzourakis | RSA
Short interventions by:
- Lambrini Gyftokosta | Homo Digitalis
- Elli Kriona-Saranti | HIAS
- Alexandros Konstantinou | GCR
- Danai Maragoudaki | Solomon
- Katerina Pournara | HLHR
- Thodoris Chondrogiannos | Reporters United
The event will be moderated by journalist Natasa Giamali (MEGA TV).
Tuesday, 4 February | 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM | Athens Bar Association (60 Akadimias St., Athens)
The Press Conference will be held in Greek.
Statements by Homo Digitalis in Kathimerini on speech recording and online advertising
Journalist Giannis Papadopoulos in his article for Kathimerini newspaper discusses the recent revelations about the “Active Listening” function of the advertising company Cox Media Group.
Specifically, in a corporate presentation trying to promote this feature to its customers, Cox Media Group claimed that it could “eavesdrop” on conversations of users of mobile phones and other smart devices and with the help of artificial intelligence create targeted ads. The Company’s existing customer base includes major technology companies, including Facebook, Google and Amazon.
Lamprini Gyftokosta and Eleftherios Chelioudakis provided statements for Homo Digitalis to the reporter regarding both mobile phone settings and the challenges that arise in protecting the personal data and privacy of users through the dark patterns used by the tech giants.
We are very grateful to the journalist for his interest in our posts. You can read his article here.
In a related article-opinion hosted by Kathimerini newspaper and co-authored by Lillian Mitrou, Professor at the University of the Aegean and Vassilis Karkatzounis, PhD candidate at the University of the Aegean, important observations are provided regarding the challenges arising from the application of legislation in the complex environment of online advertising. You can read the article here.
Finally, we recall that as early as 2020, Homo Digitalis has already taken strategic legal action at the European level with our complaints against Google and IAB Europe in the context of their intrusive practices of targeted behavioural advertising. Our cases are pending before the Irish and Belgian authorities respectively and we expect decisions on these cases to be issued shortly. You can read more here.
We spoke to the newspaper Kathimerini and journalist Vassilis Andrianopoulos about cyber-bullying
Konstantinos Kakavoulis, co-founder and Treasurer of the Board of Directors of Homo Digitalis, gave comments to the newspaper Kathimerini and journalist Vassilis Andrianopoulos on cyber-bullying and Homo Digitalis’ related pro bono actions.
We would like to thank the newspaper Kathimerini and the journalist for their interest in our actions.
You can read the article here.
We spoke to the newspaper Kathimerini and journalist Yannis Papadopoulos about the leak of personal data to Christie's Auction House
On 30 May, international auction house Christie’s sent an email to its customers to inform them that their personal data had been hacked, and on 3 June a lawsuit was filed in New York for damages against the international auction house.
The journalist of Kathimerini newspaper, Yiannis Papadopoulos, wrote a detailed article on this case, and Homo Digitalis provided relevant comments, with Eleftherios Chelioudakis representing us.
We thank the journalist for his interest in our views.
You can read the article here.
Interview of Homo Digitalis in mononews about our great success and the 175.000 euro fine of the Greek DPA to the Ministry of Asylum and Migration
Homo Digitalis spoke to mononews and journalist Alexianna Tsotsou for her report on our complaint against the KENTAUROS and YPERION systems and the 175,000 euro fine imposed by the Greek Data Protection Authority on the Ministry of Asylum and Migration. Comments on Homo Digitalis were provided by our Co-Founder and Lawyer, Eleftherios Chelioudakis
You can read the article here.
We would like to thank the journalist for her cooperation, her detailed reporting and her interest in our actions.
Homo Digitalis' interview with Computer Weekly about our great success and the 175,000 euro fine imposed by the Hellenic Data Protection Authority to the Ministry of Asylum and Migration
Homo Digitalis spoke to Computer Weekly and journalist Lydia Emmanouilidou for her report on our complaint against the KENTAUROS and YPERION systems and the 175,000 euro fine imposed by the Greek Data Protection Authority on the Ministry of Asylum and Migration. Comments on Homo Digitalis were provided by our Co-Founder and Lawyer, Eleftherios Chelioudakis.
You can read the article here.
We would like to thank the journalist for her cooperation, her revealing report and her interest in our actions.
Interview of Homo Digitalis on Netzpolitik.org about our great success and the 175.000 euro fine of the Hellenic Data Protection Authority to the Ministry of Asylum and Migration
Homo Digitalis spoke to Netzpolitik.org and journalist Chris Kover for their report on our complaint against the KENTAUROS and YPERION systems and the 175,000 euro fine imposed by the Greek Data Protection Authority on the Ministry of Asylum and Migration. Comments on Homo Digitalis were provided by our Co-Founder and Lawyer, Eleftherios Chelioudakis
You can read the article here.
We would like to thank the journalist for her cooperation and interest in our actions.