EU to Meet Today to Discuss Online Data Collection and Privacy Issues

The E.U. is stepping up its scrutiny of online data collection, and will host two events in Brussels this week to discuss the potential privacy implications of the practice on European Consumers.

The Directorate General for Health and Consumers today will host a full-day roundtable event centering on the theme of “online data collection, targeting and profiling for commercial purposes in online environments.” European consumer organizations, trade organizations, and representatives from Internet firms have been invited to speak at the day long event, during which E.U. Commissioner for Consumer Affairs Meglena Kuneva will deliver a keynote address.

The Commissioner herself hosted a similar roundtable in London last year, at which she argued data collection intended to increase the value of advertising was “out of control,” and expressed concern at the volume of data being collected without the consent or knowledge of consumers.

Google, Microsoft, and Amazon have been invited to speak at the event, alongside consumer organizations such as ConsumerFocus UK, BEUC (The European Consumers’ Business Organisation). A representative from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission was also expected to participate.

In addition to the roundtable, Commissioner Kuneva will also host an EU Consumer Summit on April 1 and 2, which plans to bring together over 250 stakeholders from across Europe to discuss the “challenges and opportunities” facing today’s consumer, with a “special focus” on the digital world.

The Commission has been particularly active with regards to search engine data retention, and has also voiced concerns over technology from controversial ISP-level behavioral targeting firm, Phorm, and the legality of its practices.

“This issue has largely caught policy officials in the U.S. unaware, said Jeffrey Chester, executive director for the Center of Digital Democracy. “The Article 29 Working Party in the E.U. [a group of privacy commissioners from member states] is ahead of regulators in the U.S., and there’s growing interest from U.S. advocates hoping the E.U. will help carry this forward,” he said. Chester is due to speak at today’s roundtable.