Brussels, 18/11/2013 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission's proposal to harmonise electronic communication services in the European Union - which was presented in September - will unduly limit internet freedom, said the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) in a press release on 15 November. Several associations had already expressed their concern before the publication of the proposals, as had MEPs like Marc Tarabella (S&D, Belgium) who fear that the proposals “kill” net neutrality. In the view of the EDPS, while the inclusion of the principle of net neutrality in the text must be welcomed, this is “devoid of substance because of the almost unlimited right of providers to manage internet traffic”.
In the view of Peter Hustinx, “any monitoring or restriction of the internet activity of users should be done solely to achieve a targeted, specific and legitimate aim”. “The large-scale monitoring and restriction of users' internet communications in this proposal is contrary to EU data protection legislation as well as the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. Such interference with the rights to personal data protection, confidentiality of communications and privacy will do little to restore consumer confidence in the electronic communications marketing Europe”, he added.
The proposal recommends traffic management measures “which allow the monitoring of users' internet communications, including e-mails sent or received, websites visited and files downloaded in order to filter, slow down or restrict access to illegal services or content”, the EDPS explains. He goes on to describe these measures as “highly intrusive” and incompatible with the “principle of an open internet”.
Consumers' confidence in the EU electronic communications market will only be restored if internet users have the guarantee that their rights to privacy, the confidentiality of their communications and the protection of their personal data are protected.
The EDPS therefore calls on the Commission to “outline more precise reasons for which traffic management measures can be applied. Any interference with their rights must be clearly communicated to users, allowing them to switch to those providers that apply less privacy-invasive traffic management techniques in their services”, the supervisor continues. The EDPS also wants the national data protection authorities to be more involved in the proposal.
The services of Ms Kroes are currently looking into the opinion of the EDPS, but already expressed surprise on Monday at Peter Hustinx' comments on the “Deep packet inspection”, technological mechanisms used by businesses to manage traffic and, possibly, to monitor internet users. The spokesperson to Kroes stated that she was just as concerned as the EDPS over the question of “transparency in data management matters”. (SP/transl.fl)