In Germany, the Federal Minister of the Interior, Nancy Faeser, considered two amendments to the Constitution as part of an ambitious plan to strengthen cybersecurity across the nation. This followed from calls to strengthen cyber resilience for federal authorities, critical infrastructure and to modernise and expand cybersecurity architecture in Germany. Ms. Faeser noted that cybersecurity threats remained high. German authorities and businesses have been the target of cyberattacks since Russia's war in Ukraine. Disinformation, sabotage and espionage were also identified as critical issues. Read more

The NIS 2 Directive (Directive 2022/2555) on measures for a high common level of cyber security across the EU has now entered into force. Member states must now incorporate the provisions into their national law by October 2024. NIS 2 will replace its predecessor – NIS (Directive 2016/1148), which was the first cross-sector cyber security law in the EU. NIS 2 has been necessary because the speed at which network and information systems have developed into a central feature of everyday life has led to greater interconnectedness, including in cross-border exchanges and, with this, has come an expansion of the cyber threat landscape. The number, magnitude, sophistication, frequency and impact of incidents are increasing, and can impede the pursuit of economic activities in the internal market, generating financial loss, undermining user confidence and causing major damage to the Union’s economy and society. Cyber security preparedness and effectiveness are therefore now more essential than ever to the proper functioning of the internal market; "adapted, coordinated and innovative responses" are required in all member states, says the EU. NIS was not implemented consistently across member states with, for example, some services being categorised as "essential" in some countries but not in others. Read more

The UK Government published its Resilience Framework on 19 December 2022. This step recognises that crises are likely to be greater than we have been used to in both frequency and scale in the next decade, given what the government describes as "an increasingly volatile world, defined by geopolitical and geoeconomics shifts, rapid technological change and a changing climate." Read more

The new EU standard contractual clauses (New EU SCCs) came into force on 27 September 2021 for the transfer of personal data from the EEA to third countries under the EU General Data Protection Regulation (EU 2016/679) (GDPR). The European Commission Implementing Decisions ((2001/497/EC) and (2010/87/EU)) which incorporated the previous standard contractual clauses (Old EU SCCs), were repealed on that day. Read more

In its judgment this morning the Supreme Court has overturned the Court of Appeal's decision in the high profile Lloyd v Google case, which would have opened the floodgates for class actions for compensation for loss of control of personal data to be brought on behalf of very large numbers of individuals without identifying class members: Lloyd v Google LLC [2021] UKSC 50. Read more

The European Commission has proposed a legal framework on AI to ensure that EU citizens can trust AI. It is essential reading for all business using or contemplating the use of AI systems. Read more

Herbert Smith Freehills and the Federation Against Software Theft are delighted to invite you to our joint webinar on Wednesday 20 January 2021, where expert speakers from Herbert Smith Freehills will provide insights into the following topical issues: Ransomware: Ransomware attacks are on the increase and the impact in terms of disruption and damage to reputation … Read more

Summary The ICO has fined Marriott Inc (“Marriott”) £18.4 million in relation to a 2014 cyber-attack on Starwood Hotels. The ICO had previously issued a notice of its intention to fine Marriott £99.2 million. The Penalty Notice does not explain the reasons why the final fine is considerably lower than this amount. Following the ICO’s … Read more