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OxHRH

When data protection eclipses national security: Brazil’s Supreme Court leans towards unconstitutionality of ministerial dossier on antifascists

Gustavo Fonseca Ribeiro - 20th January 2021

Right to Freedom of Association| Right to Freedom of Speech and Expression| Right to Privacy

In June 2020, the headline “classified governmental action aims at antifascist professors and police officers” was published by a Brazilian newspaper of national circulation. According to the outlet, the Ministry of Justice had secretly produced and circulated among public agencies a dossier containing names, photographs and social media addresses of 579 public safety governmental employees […]

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OxHRH

Use of Facial Recognition Technology in India: A Function Creep Breaching Privacy

- 11th January 2021

Freedom of Expression| Right to Privacy

Criminal investigation has become convenient for the law enforcement agencies after the advent of “Facial Recognition Technology” (FRT) in India. Regardless of its benefits, it’s a threat to privacy and basic human rights of the citizens. Use of such technology in the absence of any regulatory authority or law will lead to abuse of power […]

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The Unconstitutionality of the “Publication of Notice of Intended Marriage” clause under the Indian Special Marriage Act

Ayush Mishra - 14th September 2020

Equality and Non-Discrimination| Freedom of Expression| Relationship Rights| Right to Privacy

The Special Marriage Act was enacted in 1954 to allow citizens of India to solemnize inter-faith and inter-caste marriages without the need to renounce their religion. The Supreme Court of India, however, has recently accepted a petition challenging the constitutionality of Section 6 of the act that mandates the Marriage Officer to publish the notice […]

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Ensuring the lawfulness of automated facial recognition surveillance in the UK

Martin Kwan - 3rd September 2020

Equality and Non-Discrimination| Right to Privacy

In R(Bridges) v South Wales Police, the England and Wales Court of Appeal reviewed the lawfulness of the use of live automated facial recognition technology (‘AFR’) by the South Wales Police Force. CCTV camera­­s capture images of the public, which are then compared with digital images of persons on a watchlist. The use of AFR […]

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OxHRH

Temporary Exclusion Orders and the Right to a Fair Hearing in the UK

Sapan Maini-Thompson - 4th June 2020

Access to Justice| Right to Privacy

In QX v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2020], the UK High Court reached a landmark preliminary decision that ECHR Article 6 applies to the judicial review of obligations imposed under a Temporary Exclusion Order (TEO). The Court further held that the claimant is entitled to the level of disclosure outlined in SSHD […]

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OxHRH

Does India’s covid-19 Contact Tracing App Violate Digital Rights?

Ashi Mehta - 11th May 2020

Media Privacy and Communications| Right to Privacy

On 14 April 2020, during his speech on the extension of the lockdown in India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged citizens to download the Aarogya Setu app to supplement the state’s efforts in battling the COVID-19 pandemic. Its download was once pitched as a voluntary step taken by citizens, but a directive now makes this […]

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OxHRH

Covering Up for the Face Covering Regulation: A Janus-Faced Position

Edward Lui and Thomas Yeon - 24th April 2020

Right to Privacy

The storm over Hong Kong’s rule of law rages on, as the Court of Appeal (the “Court”) delivered the judgment of Leung Kwok Hung v Secretary for Justice, which partially upheld the controversial Prohibition on Face Covering Regulation (“PFCR”). The facts were simple: the Government enacted the PFCR last year to curb anti-government protests. Section […]

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OxHRH

El Gizouli: Mutual Legal Assistance Meets Data Protection

Tim Cochrane - 13th April 2020

Right to Privacy

On 25 March 2020, the UK Supreme Court issued R (El Gizouli) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2020] UKSC 10.  Due to the COVID-19 global pandemic, this was the court’s first judgment to be handed down remotely.  It confirmed the importance of data protection laws to international transfers of personal information for […]

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Dutch Court Provides Valuable Precedent for Human Rights in the Digital Welfare State

Divij Joshi - 26th March 2020

Media Privacy and Communications| Right to Privacy

Even as the use of technologies utilising ‘artificial intelligence’ and ‘big data’ proliferates in the public sector, their compatibility with human rights norms and constitutional rights has been circumspect. Investigations into the ‘digital welfare state’ reveal that the implementation of automated decision-making tools within essential government services is prejudicing the human rights of welfare dependents. […]

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OxHRH

JCHR Report: The Right to Privacy (Article 8) and the Digital Revolution

Tim Cochrane - 18th December 2019

Right to Privacy

On 3 November 2019, the Joint Committee on Human Rights (JCHR) published a report on The Right to Privacy (Article 8) and the Digital Revolution. The report highlights ways in which privacy rights risk being undermined by technology companies online, and proposes recommendations for reform. While some of the report’s findings are underdeveloped, on the […]

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OxHRH

Why the Digitization of Welfare States is a Pressing Human Rights Issue

Christiaan van Veen - 18th December 2019

Right to Privacy

In this blog post, Director of NYU Law’s Digital Welfare State and Human Rights Project, Christiaan van Veen, discusses a report presented by United Nations Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, Philip Alston, to the UN General Assembly. The recent report by the UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, prepared […]

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