On 3 October 2023, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) published guidance (the Guidance) on lawful monitoring in the workplace. The Guidance provides advice to companies to help them comply with their obligations under the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018) when monitoring anyone who performs work on their behalf. This is not limited to employees and could include monitoring of workers or those who are self-employed.Continue Reading UK Workplace monitoring – are you compliant?


On 19 September, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) announced in a press release that it is to launch a pilot advisory service next year, called the DRCF AI and Digital Hub.

This service will be operated by members of the Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum (DRCF), made up of the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the Office of Communications (Ofcom), the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

The DRCF AI and Digital Hub will provide businesses with tailored advice and support regarding how to meet requirements across multiple regulatory regimes. The DSIT anticipates that this service will expedite the process of getting new products and innovations to market, in a safe and responsible manner.

As such, the launch of the DRCF AI and Digital Hub will likely be welcome news for businesses across the UK, providing companies and innovators with the tools to navigate a challenging and multi-layered regulatory environment.Continue Reading DRCF to launch AI and Digital Hub regulatory advice pilot in 2024

Further to the joint announcement in June by UK Secretary of State for Science, Innovation, and Technology and the US Commerce Secretary of their intention to create a UK-US data bridge (please see our blog for further details), the UK government has passed a Regulation establishing a UK-US data bridge. The data bridge comes in the form of an extension to the EU-US Data Bridge Privacy Framework (the DPF) and will come into force on 12 October.Continue Reading UK government announces a UK data bridge with the US

On 11 September 2023, the UK’s Department for Science, Innovation, and Technology (DSIT), published the draft Data Protection (Fundamental Rights and Freedoms) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (DP Regulations), which seek to amend the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018).Continue Reading DSIT publishes draft amendments to the UK GDPR and DPA 2018

On 12 September 2023, the UK Information Commissioner and the Chief Executive of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), signed a joint Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), which establishes how the NCSC and the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) will cooperate. The NCSC is the technical authority in the UK that provides standards and guidance to organisations on cyber security. The ICO is responsible for providing guidance and enforcement of the data protection rules in the UK, including the obligation of organisations to apply security measures around personal data.Continue Reading Boosting digital resilience – The UK Information Commissioner and NCSC CEO sign Memorandum of Understanding

Please click here to access the source post from our Global Regulatory Enforcement Law Blog.

In this blog, the authors delve into a significant decision by the German Federal Cartel Office (FCO) four years ago, accusing a major technology company of abusive behavior due to alleged violations of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Recently

Background

The European Commission (EC) issued the long-awaited adequacy decision for the new EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework (Framework) on July 10, 2023. The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) had previously invalidated both the U.S.-EU Safe Harbor in 2015, and the U.S.-EU Privacy Shield in 2020 after challenges by Austrian privacy activist Max Schrems (CJEU decisions known as Schrems I and Schrems II, respectively). Following those decisions President Biden signed Executive Order 14086 on “Enhancing Safeguards for United States Signals Intelligence Activities”, which introduced new binding safeguards. Our previous client alert discussed how the draft adequacy decision, including in relation to this this Executive Order, addressed concerns raised in Schrems II.Continue Reading Third Time’s a Charm: European Commission adopts EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework

On June 27, 2023, the Council of Europe (“CoE”) announced the adoption of its first module of the Model Contractual Clauses (“MCCs”) for cross-border data transfers based on the Protocol amending the Convention for the Protection of Individuals with Regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data (Convention 108+). These model clauses aim to regulate data flows between data controllers and are recommended for adoption by competent authorities.Continue Reading Convention 108+: The Council of Europe Releases Model Contractual Clauses for Global Data Transfers

On 7 June 2023, the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity (ENISA) released a report Multilayer Framework for Good Cybersecurity Practices for AI (“Framework”) in response to the evolving landscape of artificial intelligence (AI) and the associated cybersecurity challenges. The publication aims to establish a robust framework that promotes cybersecurity practices throughout the entire lifecycle of AI, ranging from conceptualization to decommissioning. This blog summarises the main features of the Framework.Continue Reading ENISA Releases Comprehensive Framework for Ensuring Cybersecurity in the Lifecycle of AI Systems