Facebook User To Be Fined Under Spanish Social Media Gag Law For Police Comments

Social Media in its infancy was hailed as a great equalizer for everyone's voice to be heard. Years ago, at conference after conference, I heard so called "futurists" and other "prognosticators" proclaim social media as the best invention since air conditioning or the microwave.

So many social media "evangelists" (a fancy term for some consultants who are full of s*#t) shouted from the roof tops how digital platforms would make the world a safer and freer place to exchange ideas and increase the freedom of speech.  Unfortunately, many of these "evangelists" don't understand how some governments and private companies are using social media to digitally follow and keep tabs on what people are doing.  Some of these new activities are actually a huge threat to democracy and our personal freedoms.  

Earlier this year, the government in Spain enacted its "Citizen Security Law" which appears to restrict what its citizens may say online about some government officials.  On July 22nd, the law was apparently utilized when local police in Spain accused one of its citizens of "making comments on social media that showed a lack of respect and consideration for Gumar's (a town in Spain) local police.  The accused may be fined hundreds of Euros and has hired a lawyer to fight the charges.  

Spain isn't the first country to enact and/or enforce laws specifically designed to stop its citizens from criticizing its government online and it will not be the last country to do so.  Therefore, it is imperative to be vigilant about digital freedom of speech and privacy.  You don't know how important these rights are until you lose them.  

Copyright 2015 by The Law Office of Bradley S. Shear, LLC All rights reserved.

Facebook Threatens European Regulators Over Stronger Privacy Laws

In a very troubling development that shows Facebook's true colors, one of its corporate executives stated that if European regulators continue to scrutinize Facebook's data collection and utilization practices its citizens will not be provided certain features in a timely manner.  This veiled threat to European regulators demonstrates that the EU is on the right track in questioning the data privacy policies and practices of Facebook and other Internet companies.  

Manufacturers of cars and heavy machinery, pharmaceutical companies, banks, chemical companies, etc.. are required to follow appropriate safety regulations in Europe and around the world.  Data collection and usage laws are nothing more than safety regulations and it is time for Facebook and the entire digital ecosystem to get on board with regulations that will enhance user trust of their platforms. 

An Austrian class action lawsuit about Facebook's data usage practices, the ongoing Netherlands privacy regulator investigation into Facebook's activities, and the possibility that Europe will enact stronger data protection laws that will provide greater regulatory tools to protect citizens from some of Facebook's troubling data collection and usage practices appears to worry the company.  These developments demonstrate the importance of baking privacy into your platform's design and the need for Facebook to change its data collection and usage practices and its policies.   

The bottom line is that data privacy is a safety issue.  My hope is that U.S. lawmakers and regulators soon follow Europe's lead in understanding that unfettered data collection and usage is a clear and present danger to its citizens and that more robust privacy laws are a must in the Big Data Age.

 Copyright 2015 by The Law Office of Bradley S. Shear, LLC All rights reserved.