Day: April 23, 2020

European Commission Strategy: Digital technologies – actions in response to coronavirus pandemic

Jonathan DonnerDigital Livelihoods, Identity and Privacy, Public Sphere
Digital technologies – actions in response to coronavirus pandemic
The European Commission has been working to coordinate, complement and initiate measures to deal with every aspect of the coronavirus pandemic, and digital, media and telecoms play a vital role. Digital technologies have never been more important in our lives, and making sure Europe has the infrastructure, the connectivity and the regulations in place to respond to coronavirus and to keep people active and safe online is our mission.

Key Quote: “Shaping Europe’s Digital Future”

Follow links for details on Data, artificial intelligence and supercomputers, Telecommunications, networks and connectivity, Online platforms and disinformation, and skills, collaborative working and creativity

Change Model: Policy

Oxford Internet Institute: Ethical Guidelines for SARS-CoV-2 Digital Tracking and Tracing Systems

Jonathan DonnerIdentity and Privacy
Ethical Guidelines for SARS-CoV-2 Digital Tracking and Tracing Systems
The World Health Organisation declared COVID-19 a global pandemic on 11th March 2020, recognising that the underlying SARS-CoV-2 has caused the greatest global crisis since World War II. In this article, we present a framework to evaluate whether and to what extent the use of digital systems that track and/or trace potentially infected individuals is not only legal but also ethical. Digital tracking and tracing (DTT) systems may severely limit fundamental rights and freedoms, but they ought not to be deployed in a vacuum of guidance, to ensure that they are ethically justifiable, i.e. coherent with society’s expectations and values. Interventions must be necessary to achieve a specific public health objective, proportional to the seriousness of the public health threat, scientifically sound to support their effectiveness, and time-bounded (1,2). However, this is insufficient. This is why in this article we present a more inclusive framework also comprising twelve enabling factors to guide the design and development of ethical DTT systems.

Morley, Jessica and Cowls, Josh and Taddeo, Mariarosaria and Floridi, Luciano, Ethical Guidelines for SARS-CoV-2 Digital Tracking and Tracing Systems (April 22, 2020). https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3582550

Key Quote: “Only One Chance to Get It Right”

Change Model: Analysis and Guidance for Policymakers and Technologists

Letter to social media platforms: preserve coronavirus misinformation data

Jonathan DonnerPublic Sphere
Researchers want social media companies to preserve coronavirus misinformation data
[The Verge 2.22.20] The Committee to Protect Journalists, Access Now, the EFF, and other organizations have asked social media companies to preserve misinformation takedown data during the coronavirus pandemic for future research and transparency purposes.

Change Model: Advocacy