Case Studies

In mid-2019, the media revealed that the UK Home Office had been using an algorithm/automated computer system for five years to process visa applications. Foxglove and JCWI argued that the

The EU Passenger Name Record (PNR) Directive obliges airlines to collect personal, and sometimes potentially sensitive, data of travellers and share it with government authorities. The data is mined and

In 2019, the UK Police brought in new regulations on how police officers should gather data-based evidence to investigate certain criminal cases. Under the policy, police can request that the

In Spain, the data of millions of freelance workers is shared unlawfully by the registrar of freelance workers and the tax authorities with other public authorities, who then repurpose the

In March 2020, France introduced an emergency law imposing a strict lockdown on the whole country. People who did not comply were subject to fines and even jail time. Authorities

Under the guise of detecting potential welfare and tax fraud, the Dutch government introduced a computerised system (System Risk Indication or “SyRI”) that profiled individuals based on vast pools of

Border Violence Monitoring Network (BVMN) and I Have Rights, a refugee law clinic based in Samos, Greece, are preparing for litigation challenging the technology and surveillance infrastructure of the Samos

In Spain, Xnet carried out research related to two examples where data protection law is being misused by the government to limit people’s rights to freedom of information and expression.

In Germany, public health insurance providers will soon begin transferring anonymised health data of millions of people to institutions for research. However, the security standards for the storage and transfer

The “Top 400” programme in Amsterdam profiles minors and young adults to predict the 400 most likely to commit serious crimes. This programme is problematic because it disproportionately targets marginalised

The Greek law on retention of electronic communications metadata (Law 3917/2011) was not revised following a ruling from the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) invalidating the EU

noyb is taking litigation against the Luxembourg data protection authority (CNPD), challenging the inactivity of the CNPD in response to a complaint filed against Amazon back in 2019. noyb argues

Privacy First are challenging the Dutch Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) Act, which was adopted in November 2017 and entered into force in January 2019. The Act enables the Dutch

Partners Serbia are challenging the illegal acquisition of automatic facial recognition equipment by education and health institutions in Serbia. The litigation will start with motions for the initiation of an

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic many educational institutions in the UK have moved exams online and are turning to remote proctoring as a monitoring solution. This potentially results in a

On 18 June 2021, Quad9, a non-profit Domain Name Server (DNS) resolver, received an interim injunction from the District Court of Hamburg, pursuant to an application made by Sony Music.

The Center for Civil and Human Rights are taking litigation to challenge the disparate impact felt by some groups in Slovakia, in particular the Romani minority, due to unequal access

The UK Department of Education collects highly sensitive personal data about students for the National Pupil Database, which is routinely shared with other departments and third parties for academic and

In October 2024, IuRe filed a lawsuit with the Municipal Court in Prague to challenge the processing and use of sensitive personal medical data by the Czech Institute of Health

In Serbia, the Law on Social Card was adopted in 2021, establishing an electronic register containing the data of beneficiaries of social protection schemes, and enabling automated processing of data

Constitutional complaint against the amendment of the telecommunication surveillance regulation (“G10” ), which for the first time grants all 19 German intelligence services the right to use malware to surveil

Thermal scanning has expanded in pandemic times to places like airports, schools, workplaces, and retailers. The concern is that unlawful and unevidenced use could lead to unnecessary violations of data

front-LEX is requesting the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) to outlaw the European Border and Coast Guard Agency’s (Frontex’s) policy of systematically sharing the geolocation data of

In Germany, undocumented migrants are at risk of privacy violations and deportation if they try to access healthcare services. This is because the social welfare office is obliged to share

To help deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, governments are developing and rolling out apps related to contact-tracing, symptom-tracking, exposure notification, and quarantine-enforcement. Many governments are not taking data protection and

In 2019, the Bulgaria National Revenue Agency servers were hacked, compromising personal data of approximately six million people. KDBM believes the hack was partly due to deficient security practices and

As exams were shifted online during the COVID-19 pandemic, some German universities began to use proctoring software to monitor students taking their exams. This software may violate fundamental rights by

GFF believe that information about algorithm-driven technology used by state bodies in Germany should be accessible to anyone who wants to scrutinise it. When the public can check that technology

medConfidential is examining possible legal action in relation to the unlawful processing of patients’ medical data by Sensyne Health plc, a private company, which has data sharing agreements with several

Online data brokers and advertising technology (adtech) companies gather data and build intricate profiles of internet users, which are then shared and sold to thousands of advertisers. Users have limited

The German government is using copyright law to suppress documents published online, which have been legally obtained through freedom of information requests and contain information important for the public interest.In

The Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) is taking litigation in the UK related to the universal credit system administered by the UK Department for Work and Pensions. Universal credit is

Campaign Against Homophobia are supporting two LGBTQI+ activists in litigation up to the European Court of Human Rights to challenge the lack of practical tools to fight against the excessive

In January 2019, the EU’s European Commission granted adequacy to Japan for its data protection laws, allowing personal data to flow freely between the EU and Japan. The adequacy decision

People residing in Germany without German citizenship have their personal data automatically stored in a centralised database that can be accessed and shared by more than 14,000 government agencies. The

Association Stronger Together Skopje believe that the North Macedonia Ministry of Health’s data system, MojTermin leads to medical data of patients being processed and accessed by all medical professionals, without

Facebook and other online platforms have been criticised for their role in arbitrarily censoring legal content that is shared through their services. Without explanation Facebook removed pages belonging to Spoleczna

The UK Investigatory Powers Act (IPA) grants the government power to collect and store information about everything people do and say online. This includes emails, texts, calls, location data and

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is supposed to give users a free choice as to whether or not they agree to the collection of their personal data. However, when

The German Asylum Act grants the Federal Ministry for Migration and Refugees the power to access the mobile devices of migrants and asylum seekers, without a warrant, in order to

Ireland recently deployed a “Public Services Card” – an ID card with an electronic chip letting the government store people’s personal data (including photos). Digital Rights Ireland say the system

Domestic law on surveillance in Hungary does not require individuals who have been subjected to surveillance measures to be notified of that fact. This means there are no adequate safeguards

K-Monitor is preparing for litigation challenging the lack of recourse for getting information about online political advertising on social media platforms. K-Monitor believe that online political advertising has a decisive

The UK Investigatory Powers Act gives the government the power to gather information about what people say and do online, even when they are not suspected of a crime. In

The Ministry of Justice in Poland is using a computer system to randomly allocate cases to judges. Some judges claim that since the system was deployed, they have been given

In December 2021, the Norwegian Data Protection Authority (DPA) issued an administrative fine of NOK 65 million (around EUR 6.5 million) against dating app Grindr for disclosing personal information about

A Luxembourg resident discovered that their data was collected and offered for sale by Apollo and RocketReach, two US-based companies which collect and commercialise personal data on different online platforms.

Háttér Society are preparing for litigation challenging the blocking of access to online LGBTQI+ content in Hungary. This relates to the adoption in 2021 of legislation that bans access of

CIJ is preparing for litigation enforcing the EU Digital Services Act (DSA) to address gender-based censorship by Meta platforms and other Very Large Online Platforms (VLOPs). CIJ found that Meta

“Gig workers” are oppressed, misclassified as self-employed and denied the right to a minimum wage, as well as freedom from discrimination and unfair dismissal. Their oppression is exacerbated by digitisation,

Copyright is often used as a means to suppress or censor content online. The EU Information Society Directive allows for exceptions, for example in cases of parody or citation, serving

GLAN are working in partnership with Bindmans LLP to devise a strategic litigation approach to achieve accountability for the use of Pegasus malware on UK-based smartphones in violation of individuals’

Defend Digital Me undertook both a complaint to the Information Commissioner's Office and a judicial review of the UK Department for Education, aiming to stop its attendance tracker trial programme.

Association Taxi Project 2.0 carried out pre-litigation research to support the preparation of a complaint(s) against ride-sharing companies in Spain. Taxi Project has been analysing the behaviour of dynamic pricing

Based on research carried out by Tracking Exposed (now rebranded into AI Forensics) since 2019, privacy activists have lodged complaints before the data protection authorities of Italy and Cyprus alleging

Spanish authorities blocked the website of Women on Web (WOW), a non-profit organisation sharing information on safe medical abortions. This coincides with an increase in barriers faced by women and

Digital Rights Ireland are taking a “mass action” lawsuit against Facebook. They will represent users who have been affected by the 3 April 2021 release of computer files containing personal

In Germany, since 2017, citizens’ personal information and photographs from their ID cards have been stored in registers that are accessible to various state bodies. Under German law, authorities such

StraLi for Strategic Litigation (StraLi) is preparing a strategic path to challenge the use of facial recognition technology by law enforcement and judicial authorities in Italy. They will also identify

The online advertising industry (adtech) is built on the trade of personal data, including intimate and sensitive details about individuals. Information about individuals is shared and sold across thousands of

Internet users are being profiled and targeted by various online and digital business practices in a way that influences how they think. Examples include the use of targeted advertising or