Study on Council of Europe Recommendation R(87)15 & ETS Convention 108 : Data Protection Vision 2020 - options for improving European policy and legislation during 2010-2020

Abstract

This study has been drawn up in the context of a consultancy contract between the Council of Europe represented by Mr Jorg Polakiewicz, Head of the Law Reform Department, Directorate of Standard Setting, Directorate General of Human Rights and Legal Affairs and Dr. Joseph Cannataci, Professor of Technology Law and Director of the Centre of Law, Information & Converging Technologies, University of Central Lancashire, United Kingdom, hereinafter referred to as “the Consultant”. Dr. J. Cannataci was requested to prepare a study in Recommendation No R(87) 15 of 17 of 17 September 1987 regulating the use of personal data in the police sector and to suggest proposals for the revision of the above Recommendation. The Consultant was requested to identify, in particular: “whether the current scope of application provides the necessary levels of safeguards for the personal data processing in the light of emerging new actors involved in the prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of criminal offences or the execution of criminal penalties as well as in the light of the use of new practices and technologies; the fields where specific problems may arise from the point of view of the application of data protection principles and, in particular, the field of the use of personal data in the police sector. The Consultant shall also consider to what extent the provision of the Convention for Protection of Individual with regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data (ETS No 108) and the abovementioned recommendation cover the current preoccupations and expectations.” In his report, the Consultant was required to include an appendix containing a set of proposals for amendments to the existing provision or for drafting additional provisions.