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On 30 January 2001, the European Commission presented a Communication to the Council and the European Parliament on its policy orientations concerning improving the security of information infrastructures and combating computer-related crime. The importance of network security and the fight against cybercrime are highlighted in the eEurope Action Plan launched by the Commission in June 2000 (see IRIS 2000-6: 5). The Commission feels that information and communication infrastructures have become a critical part of national economies and therefore need to be protected against their own vulnerabilities...

The Court of Appeal of the Hague has ruled that an on-line database set up by an organisation of real estate brokers and containing information on real estate property that is for sale, is not protected by the Databankenwet (Database Act). The Databankenwet, an implementation of the European Database Directive, requires a "substantial investment" to be made by the owner of the database. Considering that the database was created for the organisation's internal purposes prior to on-line publication, the Court judged that there had not been a substantial investment by the organisation. Therefore,...

In a judgment of 24 January 2001, the Bundesverfassungsgericht (Federal Constitutional Court - BVerfG) dismissed a complaint by television broadcaster n-tv. The latter had claimed that the ban on television coverage of court proceedings contained in Section 169.2 of the Gerichtsverfassungsgesetz (Code of Judicial Organisation - GVG) was unconstitutional. Section 169.2 of the GVG bans all sound and radio/ picture recordings intended for publication. The Constitutional Court explained its decision firstly by pointing out that Article 5.1.1 of the Grundgesetz (Basic Law - GG), which guarantees the...

Due to its obligation under the Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA) to implement Directive 95/46/EC, a new Data Protection Act has been adopted in Iceland. The new Act no. 77/2000 comes into effect on 1 January 2001. When preparing the Act, the Ministry of Justice sought inspiration from Norway as to how the Directive had been implemented there. Norway is in the same position as Iceland regarding relations with the European Union and obligations to implement directives that fall under the scope of the EEA agreement. Furthermore, the existing legislation on Data Protection dating from...

The Bundesverfassungsgericht (Federal Constitutional Court - BVerfG) has again given the press greater freedom through its decision of 28 August 2000. A finance magazine publisher asked the land registry - initially without explaining her reasons for doing soto grant an editor access to certain pages of the land register. The request was rejected on the grounds that the registered landowner should be consulted first. Furthermore, the land registry thought that the journalist should explain her reasons for consulting the register in order to weigh up the public interest, as asserted by the press,...