Given the amount of CCTV there is everywhere, we know the UK tolerates spying on its citizens more than other EU countries. But now Britain might be taken to court by the EU for failing to provide the UK citizens with enough privacy and personal data protection.
The EU just launched the second step of legal action to force Britain to bring its data protection framework into line with its rules, which guarantee the confidentiality of electronic communication such as emails and internet surfing. Before being internationally embarrassed, the UK has two month to comply with the detailed opinion, which was sent to the UK by the European Commission yesterday and marks the second stage of infringement procedure.
The EU Commission has basically identified three failings. First, there is no independent authority supervising the interception of communications and hearing related complaints. Second, there is an excessively wide interpretation of the principle of consent given in Britain's Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act. Third, its sanctions against the interception of personal data are too limited.
The case came up last year when the technology company Phorm planned a targeted web advertising system. This included the tracking of their customers' internet traffic without telling them. British MEPs protested and campaigners complained to the information commissioner, the interception commissioner, government departments, Ofcom and the police. All refused to act.
Government investigation concluded that Phorm didn't breach European laws on data protection and The City of London police announced as well, that they had found no evidence of illegal activity. So in 2008 the campaigners wrote to Viviane Reding, the EU telecoms commissioner. And she responded.
"People's privacy and the integrity of their personal data ... is a fundamental right, protected by European law. That is why the Commission is vigilant in ensuring that EU rules and rights are put in place," she said in a statement yesterday.
"I therefore call on the UK authorities to change their national laws to ensure that British citizens fully benefit from the safeguards set out in EU law concerning confidentiality of electronic communications."
A consolation might be that the EU Commission has also sent letters of formal notice, the first stage of the infringement procedure, to Romania, Poland and Germany.
The European Union has warned the UK government that it does not do enough to protect its citizens' online privacy and personal data. Now the EU has moved to the next stage of legal action, which could see Britain taken to court.

The warning follows complaints over the Phorm company's targeted advertising system. The controversial technology is designed to track the activities of internet users, and was tested on some BT customers without their consent. Campaigners complained to various bodies including the UK's data protection agency, and the communications regulator Ofcom. No action was taken. The City of London police began an investigation, but this was soon dropped.


The EU Commission formally warned Britain that it was not meeting EU rules in April. Other countries that have been warned include Germany, Poland and Romania. However, last week the Commission moved onto the second stage of the infringement procedure against the UK, with a letter to the government.

The Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) has been particularly criticised by the Commission for its weak definition of "consent" and its limited sanctions. The Commission also found that there was no independent body to oversee and hear complaints about communications interception. Overall, the letter says that the UK fails to comply with the EU's Data Protection Directive and e-Privacy Directive.

"People's privacy and the integrity of their personal data in the digital world is not only an important matter: it is a fundamental right, protected by European law," the EU's Information Commissioner Viviane Reding said in a statement on Thursday. "I therefore call on the UK authorities to change their national laws to ensure that British citizens fully benefit from the safeguards set out in EU law concerning confidentiality of electronic communications."

The Home Office confirmed that it had received the letter, but has so far not responded. Ministers said that they would reply to the letter after they have taken some time to consider it. The Home Office has two months to reply, and if the Commission is not satisfied with the response, then Britain could face charges in the European Court of Justice.