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Information Technology in Italy |
by Agnese de Leo & Rosa Gabriele | |
Transborder Data FlowsItaly is a well-established democracy, with no apparent governmental censorship. There is no evidence of any form of censorship or persecution of opinions. The 1948 Constitution has several provisions relating to privacy. Article 14 states, "(1) The liberty and secrecy of correspondence and of every form of communication are inviolable. (2) Limitations upon them may only be enforced by decision, for which motives must be given, of the judicial authorities with the guarantees laid down by law."The Italian Data Protection Act was enacted in 1996. The Act is intended to fully implement the EU Data Protection Directive. It covers both electronic and manual files for both government agencies and the private sector. Italy first attempted to enact data protection legislation in 1981. The Supervisory Authority [(Garante)] enforces the Act for Personal Data Protection. Garante maintains a register, conducts audits and enforces the laws and can also audit databanks not under its jurisdiction such as those relating to intelligence activities. They also require that any personal data collected on a person be available to that person upon request and at no cost. There are also sectoral laws relating to workplace surveillance, statistical information, and electronic files and digital signatures. The law on computer crime includes penalties on interception of electronic communications. Italy is a member of the Council of Europe and has signed and ratified the Convention for the Protection of Individuals with Regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data (ETS No. 108). It has signed and ratified the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. It is a member of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and has adopted the OECD Guidelines on the Protection of Privacy and Transborder Flows of Personal Data. Another interesting view is that since Italian libraries do not have access to the Internet this is a form of censorship.
Source: http:www.gilc.org/privacy/survey/surveyak.html#Italy Italy & EU In February of this year, Italy attempted to mediate the squabble between the US and the EU regarding the EU privacy directive. This is a law that would prohibit companies in the EU from exchanging personal data with non EU firms in countries where there is no similar privacy legislation. The mediation worked. Recently, European Union leaders approved a pact enabling U.S. companies to collect personal information about European citizens while complying with strict EU privacy guidelines, a move that officials say will help spur the growth of transatlantic electronic commerce. The European privacy principles will require companies meeting the safe-harbor standard to give notice to European citizens about how their information is being gathered and used, give them the option of saying no to companies that want to share the data, and offer them reasonable access to their own records. They also have to agree to allow third parties to resolve complaints. Source: "US- EU Agree on Privacy Standard". Washington Post, June 1, 2000 |