Information Technology Law

Internet Safety Expert Recognised with OBE

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Photo by Rami Al-zayat

An Essex legal expert has been recognised in the Queen’s Birthday Honours for her work on internet safety.

Professor Lorna Woods, from our School of Law, has been working since 2017 with William Perrin of the Carnegie UK Trust to develop a workable solution to ‘online harms’, a term that covers a range of internet safety issues. Professor Woods and Mr Perrin are to both receive OBEs.

Professor Woods said: “I am delighted, if a little surprised, by this honour. I’d like to thank Will, of course, but also Maeve Welsh and everyone at the Carnegie UK Trust – without their support, we would not have been able to develop our approach further or undertake the vital, ongoing engagement with those working in this area.

“Recent events have raised new concerns about the role of social media. The need for a statutory duty of care, overseen by an independent regulator, is not going away. In fact, it is more urgent than ever. We look forward to publication of the promised Online Harms Bill, and its consideration in this parliament.”

In October 2017, Professor Woods and Mr Perrin sat down to review the just-published Green Paper on Internet Safety Strategy.

Near-daily stories of bullying, self-harm and extremism had created a febrile debate. The challenge? To reset the online world and reduce the risk of harm.

The pair agreed the government response was inadequate. Drawing on their experience of the sector, they consulted with a range of actors, researched models already in use and started to write.

Across seven co-authored blogs, completed between February and May 2018 (and subsequently collected into a report, with funding from The Carnegie UK Trust), they sought to shift the debate from ”publishing” and the removal of specific content, to harm prevention, developing a detailed plan involving a statutory duty of care, overseen by an independent regulator.

The duty of care approach re-casts social media as a series of “public or quasi-public spaces”.  In creating these spaces, the providers’ goal must be not maximising profit, or engagement, but user safety. The more vulnerable an audience, the greater the responsibility.

At a time of significant public concern, their research has been a game-changer, offering a workable solution, inspiring a national newspaper campaign, rallying civil society groups and influencing lawmakers, at home and abroad.

In December 2019, they published their own draft Online Harm Reduction Bill, to maintain momentum. The draft bill was endorsed by organisations including the NSPCC, 5Rights Foundation, The Institute for Strategic Dialogue and the Royal Society of Public Health.

In January 2020, the authors and the Carnegie UK Trust also supported Lord McNally in the preparation of a short paving Bill to require Ofcom to prepare for the introduction of an Online Harms Reduction Regulator. The paving Bill was introduced into the Lords on 14 January 2020 and is currently awaiting a second reading.

Four Essex graduates have also been recognised in this year’s Queen’s Birthday Honours:

  • Dr Philip Orumwense (MA Political Behaviour, 1991) will receive a CBE for public service. Philip was Commercial Director of IT at Highways England and is recognisesd for his work across the public sector.
  • Sir David Attenborough (Honorary Graduate), has received a GCMC for his services to broadcasting and conservation.
  • Miss Carrie Anne Philbin (BA History, 2002) has received an MBE for services to education, championing diversity and inclusion in computing.
  • Ms Clare Woodman (BA Government & Sociology, 1989) has received a CBE for services to finance in her role as Head of EMEA and CEO of Morgan Stanley & Co. International PLC.

This story originally appeared on the University of Essex news webpage and is reproduced here with permission and thanks.

University of Essex Academics Respond to the European Commission Consultation on Digital Cultural Heritage

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Professor Stavroula Karapapa, University of Essex, School of Law

Digitisation has enabled access to and availability of cultural heritage to an extent previously unknown and, in addition, it has enhanced preservation and modern research opportunities, e.g. through text mining and data analytics. The availability of and access to cultural materials in digital form can provide significant support to conservation, renovation, research, study and promotion of cultural assets and, in this regard, digital cultural heritage can serve as a resource for education, enjoyment or re-use, including use towards the development of new knowledge. The need for digital transformation has been revealed and become as relevant as ever as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite its benefits, the digitisation of cultural heritage challenges traditional legal norms, such as copyright law.

Colleagues from the School of Law, in collaboration with staff from the University’s Library Services and University Archives, have contributed to a consultation of the European Commission on Digital Cultural Heritage.

In their position paper, they recommend that digitisation should enable preservation of cultural artefacts, including world heritage properties, access to the public, and accessibility by people with special needs and educational institutions.

They also recommend that law and policy should offer further support to cultural institutions towards developing digitisation initiatives (e.g. the legislative framework on orphan works should be revisited in terms of its breadth and parameters of application).

They warn against the creation of digital monopolies (e.g. public domain material should remain in the public domain after digitisation) and urge for the development of legal provisions ensuring the security of computer infrastructure both to safeguard digital culture and avoid the spread of misinformation.

Click below to download a copy of the position paper:

uoe-position-paper-digital-cultural-heritageDownload

Essex Expertise Informs Facial Recognition Decision

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The expertise and leading-edge research of three Essex academics has informed a landmark judgment on police use of facial recognition.

On Tuesday 11 August, the Court of Appeal delivered its judgment in a case brought by civil liberties campaigner Ed Bridges and the campaigning organisation Liberty, challenging a previous decision in favour of South Wales Police.

Mr Bridges, who lives in Cardiff, argued that it was possible South Wales Police had captured an image of his face on two occasions, as a result of facial recognition technology being deployed.

He brought a claim for judicial review, arguing that South Wales Police’s approach to deployment was incompatible with the right to respect for private life under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, data protection legislation, and the Public Sector Equality Duty under section 149 of the Equality Act 2010.

Professor Pete Fussey, from the Department of Sociology and Professor Lorna Woods and Dr Daragh Murray, both from the School of Law, contributed to a ‘Friends of the Court’ submission by the Surveillance Camera Commissioner to the Bridges appeal.

In addition, an annex, detailing Professor Fussey and Dr Murray’s findings in relation to the Metropolitan Police Service, was attached to the Surveillance Camera Commissioner’s submission.

The Court of Appeal upheld the Bridges appeal on four of its five grounds.

Commenting on the judgment, Professor Pete Fussey said: “The Court’s findings in relation to the use of live facial recognition technology by South Wales Police are consistent with our findings regarding the Metropolitan Police Service, in particular that such deployments are not ‘in accordance with the law’, and that too much discretion is given to police in determining who should be placed on a watchlist. The Court of Appeal was entirely correct in concluding that facial recognition cannot be considered as equivalent to the use of CCTV. The use of advanced surveillance technologies like live facial recognition demands proper consideration and full parliamentary scrutiny.”

Dr Daragh Murray said: “The use of advanced surveillance technologies, like live facial recognition, represent a step change in police capability, with potentially significant consequences for the functioning of our democracy, in terms of how individuals develop and interact and how challenges to, or protests against, government policy evolve. The Court of Appeal’s findings today regarding South Wales Police are consistent with many of our own conclusions regarding the Metropolitan Police Service. This is an important decision, particularly the conclusion that deployments were not ‘in accordance with the law’. However, many issues remain to be addressed, including the broader societal impact of facial recognition. What is abundantly clear is that all police forces should pay greater attention to human rights law considerations before deciding to deploy new surveillance technologies.”

Professor Lorna Woods said: “The judgment in ruling that the police use of Automated Facial Recognition as it stands is unlawful is welcome, but it also highlights the problems arising from a system where new surveillance technologies can be deployed based on very general common law powers without adequate safeguards. New legislation on this topic is required, to address not only the proposed use of facial recognition technology, but police use of Artificial Intelligence generally.”

Professor Lorna Woods is Professor of Internet Law. She has extensive experience in the field of media policy and communications regulation, including social media and the Internet and developed, with Will Perrin, a social media duty of care, which has had significant influence on the direction on the UK Online Harms debate. Professor Woods is an established member of a broader network of advisors who support the Surveillance Camera Commissioner in his role.

Professor Pete Fussey and Dr Daragh Murray are co-authors of the independent report into the London Metropolitan Police Service’s trial of live facial recognition technology, published by the ERSC Human Rights, Big Data and Technology Project in July 2019. It remains the only fully independently-funded report into police use of live facial recognition technology in the UK.

South Wales Police said it would not be appealing the Court of Appeal judgment.

This story originally appeared on the University of Essex website and is reproduced on our blog with permission and thanks.