In the spotlight
Determining liability for security breaches isn’t black and white
forbes, 26.05.2020
There were 1,473 data breaches reported in 2019 — a 17% increase over the previous year. That’s 1,473 incidents in which intellectual property, sensitive company data and/or personally identifiable information of employees and customers was compromised or exposed. Read More
EU data protection rules abused to censor media
euobserver, 26.05.2020
Known as the General Data Protection Regulation or GDPR, the EU rules have been commended for protecting privacy rights, but also with promises of hefty penalties for violations by big techs firms and others. But some national authorities have also used it to intimidate and censor media. Read More
Privacy activist Schrems calls on EU authorities to get Irish watchdog moving
reuters, 25.05.2020
Privacy activist Max Schrems called on the European authorities to push the Irish regulator to speed up its handling of cases he has brought against Facebook on the second anniversary of the introduction of rules designed to help protect the data of consumers. Read More
First major EU GDPR decision soon on Twitter, Facebook data practices
business-standard, 23.05.2020
Twitter may be the first big technology firm to face a fine over tougher data protection rules. Read More
EasyJet to be sued over customer data breach
computerweekly, 22.05.2020
Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the High Court on behalf of nine million easyJet customers whose details were exposed in a data breach. The group action, worth £18bn, could see each affected customer receive a £2,000 pay-out if successful. Read More
Agriculture & Environment
Factbox: Key climate spending in EU’s ‘green recovery’ plan
reuters, 27.05.2020
The European Commission unveiled a 750 billion euro ($826.3 billion) package on Wednesday which it says will put fighting climate change at the heart of the bloc’s recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. Read More
Coronavirus: Climate change ‘could have greater impact’
bbc, 26.05.2020
The boss of energy giant SSE has warned that a failure to deal with climate change could eventually have a greater economic impact than coronavirus. Alistair Phillips-Davies wants the UK government to encourage private investment in renewables by giving the green light to big new projects. Read More
Transport & Energy
Sweden looks to break out of its northern isolation
politico, 22.05.2020
It’s part of a broader rethink of Sweden’s transport links as the country tries to lower its dependence on flying — spurred by the industry’s collapse during the pandemic — and instead shift to greener transport methods like trains and ferries. However, those more traditional links have been neglected for years, and won’t be quick to rebuild. Read More
Information society
The “Do everything at home” model pays off for some tech-enabled businesses
forbes, 21.05.2020
Last year I covered a shopping social network startup, FlipFit , going by the brand name Flip. The concept was interesting, an app that enables consumers to select in-home fashion deliveries, do their own personal fashion show and collect votes from their network to help them choose the garments they wish to buy. Read More
How 5G will power smart cities of the future
theglobeandmail, 19.05.2020
5G technology is expected to be 100 times faster than the existing 4G networks in Canada, with a much lower latency rate, or lag, when sending and receiving data in real-time. It will also be able to handle a much larger number of connected devices than current networks, enabling them to speak to one another. Read More
Food & Health
Tech companies target temperature-monitoring patches for COVID-19
reuters, 26.05.2020
A group of tech companies is working on a patch about the size of small bandage that could be worn to monitor for the elevated body temperatures that can sometimes signal the onset of COVID-19. Read More
New online and wearable technologies for real-time monitoring
forbes, 26.05.2020
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), about 90% of patients who become infected with coronavirus report suffering from fever. The onset is usually sudden, followed by a period of sustained elevated readings for as much as a week or longer. Read More
Exclusive: big pharma rejected EU plan to fast-track vaccines in 2017
guardian, 25.05.2020
The world’s 20 largest pharmaceutical companies undertook around 400 new research projects in the past year, according to Bloomberg Intelligence. Around half were focused on treating cancer, compared with 65 on infectious diseases. There are eight potential vaccines for coronavirus in clinical trials, but there is no guarantee of success. Read More
Science policy & Communication
‘Infodemic’: Scientists fight online coronavirus misinformation war
japantimes, 26.05.2020
He is among a growing number of doctors, academics and institutions who in recent weeks have adapted and amplified their scientific messaging in hopes of countering what has been termed an “infodemic” — a deluge of information, including widespread false claims, which experts say can pose a serious threat to public health. Read More
In land of big data, China sets individual privacy rights
reuters, 26.05.2020
The legislation is part of China’s first civil code, a sweeping package of laws that is being deliberated during the annual meeting of parliament, which began on Friday after a delay of more than two months due to the coronavirus. According to a recent draft, an individual has a right to privacy and to have their personal information protected. Read More
Big data, AI to lead post-pandemic economy
koreatimes, 26.05.2020
COVID-19 accelerates digital transformation of global business players The unprecedented coronavirus pandemic, which broke out in late December 2019 and has now engulfed the world, portends to reshape our lives, and the world order as we know it. This is the 14th and last of a series to cast light on the changes that might lie ahead. Read More
‘Scientists set new record for data transmission’
business-standard, 25.05.2020
Scientists on Monday said they have achieved a world record for high data transmission over 75 kilometres of standard optical fibre, using a powerful class of micro-comb called soliton crystals. Read More
EU initiatives
Research Headlines – How to achieve more in funding R&I for the circular economy
ec-europa, 27.05.2020
The EU-funded CICERONE project is paving the way for closer cooperation among circular economy research and innovation programme owners (POs) the various public authorities across Europe that are currently the main source of funding for projects in this area. Read More
EU defence chief fears research will be squeezed by COVID-19
sciencebusiness, 26.05.2020
The costly effort by governments to mitigate the coronavirus pandemic will leave less money for defence in the coming years, and require greater cooperation than before among member states, says the European Defence Agency’s (EDA) new chief executive. Read More
International Cooperation – EU and Japan step up cooperation in science, technology and innovation
ec-europa, 26.05.2020
Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, and Naokazu Takemoto, Minister of State for Science and Technology Policy, agreed to step up EU-Japan cooperation in the context of the Japan-EU Leaders Videoconference Meeting. Read More
Curious news
Life after coronavirus: ‘We can shape a totally different world’
deutschewelle-en, 26.05.2020
On a personal level for you, as a transformation expert: has experiencing this crisis changed any of your theories? I felt that a lot of the things that were in my head have come to my tummy, just because you notice how ridiculous this is, the way that we’ve been running development and calling it successful development. Read More