Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Web
  3. News

European Commission Sues Britain Over Phorm and Internet Privacy

By
European Commission Sues Britain Over Phorm and Internet Privacy

The European Commission has launched an infringement case against the United Kingdom over Phorm behavioral advertising technology, saying the technology violates EU ePrivacy and personal data protection rules in the ways it targets online advertisements at individual Internet users.

“We have been following the Phorm case for some time and have concluded that there are problems in the way the UK has implemented parts of EU rules on the confidentiality of communications,” said EU Telecoms commissioner Viviane Reding, in a statement. “Technologies like internet behavioral advertising can be useful for businesses and consumers but they must be used in a way that complies with EU rules. These rules are there to protect the privacy of citizens and must be rigorously enforced by all Member States.”

Recommended Videos

Phorm’s ad-serving technology aims to deliver highly-targeting advertising to individual Internet users using deep packet inspection: essentially, working in partnership with ISPs, Phorm looks at the content of essentially every bit of information destined for particular Internet users, analyses it, and then serves ads from its inventory to those users based on perceived similarities between the offered goods and services and a user’s online usage. Phorm maintains the data it collects are completely anonymous and cannot be tracked back to individual Internet users; nonetheless, Phorm’s technology has sparked controversy among technologists and consumer activists objecting to inspection and surveillance of their Internet usage.

Last year, BT admitted to conducting limited tests of Phorm technology in 2006 and 2007 without informing its customers; it also conducted an invitation-only test of Phorm at the end of 2008.

Britain has two months to respond to the charges. The European Commission is calling on the UK to change its laws to honor EU confidentiality rules; in particular, the EC is concerned that under UK regulations interception of Internet traffic is considered legal of an ISP could reasonably believe consent had been given. The EC is also concerned the UK does not have a national regulatory authority to deal with the technology and privacy issues.

If the UK does not comply, the EC can bring the matter to the European Court of Justice, which, in theory, could force the UK to change its laws.

Editors’ Recommendations

Geoff Duncan
Geoff Duncan
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…
How to change margins in Google Docs
Laptop Working from Home

When you create a document in Google Docs, you may need to adjust the space between the edge of the page and the content --- the margins. For instance, many professors have requirements for the margin sizes you must use for college papers.

You can easily change the left, right, top, and bottom margins in Google Docs and have a few different ways to do it.

Read more
What is Microsoft Teams? How to use the collaboration app
A close-up of someone using Microsoft Teams on a laptop for a videoconference.

Online team collaboration is the new norm as companies spread their workforce across the globe. Gone are the days of primarily relying on group emails, as teams can now work together in real time using an instant chat-style interface, no matter where they are.

Using Microsoft Teams affords video conferencing, real-time discussions, document sharing and editing, and more for companies and corporations. It's one of many collaboration tools designed to bring company workers together in an online space. It’s not designed for communicating with family and friends, but for colleagues and clients.

Read more
Microsoft Word vs. Google Docs
A person using a laptop that displays various Microsoft Office apps.

For the last few decades, Microsoft Word has been the de facto standard for word processors across the working world. That's finally starting to shift, and it looks like one of Google's productivity apps is the heir apparent. The company's Google Docs solution (or to be specific, the integrated word processor) is cross-platform and interoperable, automatically syncs, is easily shareable, and perhaps best of all, is free.

However, using Google Docs proves it still has a long way to go before it can match all of Word's features -- Microsoft has been developing its word processor for over 30 years, after all, and millions still use Microsoft Word. Will Google Docs' low barrier to entry and cross-platform functionality win out? Let's break down each word processor in terms of features and capabilities to help you determine which is best for your needs.
How does each word processing program compare?
To put it lightly, Microsoft Word has an incredible advantage over Google Docs in terms of raw technical capability. From relatively humble beginnings in the 1980s, Microsoft has added new tools and options in each successive version. Most of the essential editing tools are available in Google Docs, but users who are used to Word will find it limited.

Read more