scholarly journals Permissible Limits of Interference with the Right to Privacy in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic

2020 ◽  
pp. 57-65
Author(s):  
Mariya MENDZHUL

Over the past year, the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated a number of social problems and in the context of incomplete medical reform and the economic crisis, the situation in Ukraine is not the best. That is why, within the framework of this study, attention has been paid to the analysis of the concept of ‘private life’ and its relationship with the concepts of ‘personal life’ and ‘family life’, as well as it has been clarified the permissible limits of interference in private life based on analysis of ECtHR practice and the COVID-19 pandemic. The analysis of the case law of the European Court of Human Rights outlines that there is a rather extended interpretation and the absence of a comprehensive definition of the term ‘private life’. According to the ECtHR, the boundaries of private life are not limited exclusively to the ‘internal sphere’ and it is impossible to exclude the outside world completely; private life can intersect even with professional activities. The Convention on the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms covers the following areas of private life: both physical and psychological integrity of a person, his legal and social identification, gender identity, as well as sexual orientation, photographs, relationships with other people, decision-making bodies, etc. When examining the permissible limits of interference in the sphere of private life, we took into account the positions of scholars, national legislation, ECtHR practice, the results of sociological research, as well as statistics on the spread of SARS-CoV-2 and mortality in Ukraine, the neighbouring European countries,the UK , USA, Spain, Italy, Germany, France, South Korea, Sweden and Belarus as well. In the course of the research it is substantiated that the terms ‘personal life’ and ‘private life’ are synonyms and also cover family life. The ECHR may consider violating the right to privacy during the COVID-19 pandemic in the future. At the same time, the COVID-19 pandemic and the threat it poses to human health can be considered a legitimate purpose of invasion of privacy. If restrictive measures are taken on the basis of the law and their further legal application, such interventions may be recognized as legal. At the same time, whether such interventions are necessary in a democratic society, as well as whether the principle of proportionality is observed, should be analyzed when considering individual cases.

Author(s):  
Tigran D. Oganesian

The article considers the legality of mass surveillance and protection of personal data in the context of the international human rights law and the right to respect for private life. Special attention is paid to the protection of data on the Internet, where the personal data of billions of people are stored. The author emphasizes that mass surveillance and technology that allows the storage and processing of the data of millions of people pose a serious threat to the right to privacy guaranteed by Article 8 of the ECHR of 1950. Few companies comply with the human rights principles in their operations by providing user data in response to requests from public services. In this regard, States must prove that any interference with the personal integrity of an individual is necessary and proportionate to address a particular security threat. Mandatory data storage, where telephone companies and Internet service providers are required to store metadata about their users’ communications for subsequent access by the law enforcement and intelligence agencies, is neither necessary nor proportionate. The author analyses the legislation of some countries in the field of personal data protection, as well as examples from practice. Practice in many States is evidence of the lack of adequate national legislation and enforcement, weak procedural safeguards and ineffective oversight, which contributes to widespread impunity for arbitrary or unlawful interference with the right to privacy. In conclusion, we propose a number of measures aimed at improving the level of personal data protection in accordance with the international standards. In order to provide guarantees and a minimum level of adequate data protection in the face of new challenges to human rights in an ever-changing digital environment, the author proposes to solve a number of pressing issues. Firstly, States should not have the right to ask companies for and have absolute access to user data without a court order. Secondly, the process of sending a request and receiving data from a telecommunications company should be regulated in detail and transparent. The availability of specialized judges with technical expertise shall be valuable


2020 ◽  
pp. 47-51
Author(s):  
I.O. Khomichov

The article is devoted to the study of the compliance of the rights and obligations of the person authorized to perform the functions of the state or local government to the right to respect for private life, including the submitting and publishing property declaration. The author determines the approaches of national and foreign researchers to the essence of the concept of the right to privacy and concludes that it is a natural right, that includes the right to respect for private and family life, housing and correspondence. The norms of the Constitution of Ukraine and the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of 1950 concerning the human right to privacy are revealed. It іs determined that one of the main reasons for the need to introduce in Ukraine the institution of declaring for officials of public authorities is the obligation of Ukraine to comply with the United Nations Convention against Corruption, and found that domestic law is stricter than the Convention. It is concluded that human rights are the priority area of state protection, so the requirements of anti- corruption legislation on disclosure of information about personal and family life of persons, authorized to perform state and local government functions, in the declaration and access of such information is a violation of Art. 8 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and Art. 8, 32 of the Constitution of Ukraine. The author affirms that the disclosure of such a volume of information about any person is an indisputable violation of his right to privacy and family life. Key words: the right to privacy; the right to respect for private and family life; a person authorized to perform the functions of the state and local self-government; declaration; prevention of corruption.


2020 ◽  
Vol 59 (89) ◽  
pp. 303-320
Author(s):  
Jelena Milenković

In this paper, the author analyzes the protection of the right to privacy under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) at the time of the Covid-19 virus pandemic. At the beginning of the pandemic, European countries had a large number of infected people and some countries encountered a collapse of their health systems. As the situation was beyond control, it raises the question whether such a situation was caused by the non-implementation of epidemiological monitoring measures, which is comparable to the extent and manner of implementing these measures in the Far East; namely, the question is whether the democratic system remained unprotected due to the EU countries' observance of democratic human rights standards, specifically the right to privacy. Given that epidemiological monitoring measures are currently the most important instrument for combating the Covid-19 virus pandemic, European countries have to fulfill the condition of legality in implementing these measures, which interfere with the citizens' right to privacy. In that context, the author explores the case law of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), which ensures judicial protection of the rights guaranteed by the Convention (including the right to private life), focuses on the definition of the concept of the right to privacy, and examines whether epidemiological monitoring measures fall into the corpus of privacy rights. Relying on a detailed analysis of the ECtHR case law, the author points to the specific requirements that must be met in order for the epidemiological monitoring measures to be considered legal.


Author(s):  
Liudmyla Mikhnevych

The right to the confidentiality of listening, telephone conversation, telegraph and other correspondence of separate categories ofpersons is researched in the article. It is establishes that despite all legal guarantees, the right to the confidentiality of correspondenceis provided differently for separate categories of persons. The least secure of this right are those sentenced to imprisonment, and peop -le’s deputies, lawyers and other persons in respect of which a special procedure of criminal proceedings is carried out have the highestimmunity from illegal or arbitrary interference with the right to confidentiality of correspondence. Two scientific concepts of understandingthe right to the confidentiality of correspondence are characterized. The so-called “personal” concept, which considers thisright as a component of the right to privacy and family life, and the second concept justifies the independence of this right, the contentand purpose of which is broader than the protection of privacy. The perception of the right to confidentiality of correspondence in thecontext of the right to private and family life is common. It is substantiated that the “personal” concept is characterized by the connectionbetween the right to confidentiality of correspondence and the right to private and family life, as well as the consideration of theright to confidentiality of correspondence as a separate element of the right to privacy. Instead, the second concept considers the rightto confidentiality of correspondence as an independent right that has a relative connection with the sphere of private life and is a separatepersonal human right. It is noted that the Constitutional of Ukraine derives the right to confidentiality of correspondence in a separatearticle from the inviolability of private and family life, which leads to the conclusion that it is inexpediency to narrow the right toconfidentiality of listening, telephone conversation, telegraph and other correspondence only in privacy or family life.An analysis of the latest normative changes in the legal regulation of ensuring the right to confidentiality of correspondence inUkraine of separate categories of persons, in particular on the restriction of the right to convicted and higher guarantees of the right toconfidentiality of correspondence of deputies of Ukraine, are committed.


2021 ◽  
Vol 70 (4/2020) ◽  
pp. 249-265
Author(s):  
Goran Ilic

The paper analyzes the relationship between freedom of expression and the right to respect for honour and reputation. It was pointed out the importance that is given to freedom of expression nowadays, and it was especially considered the practice of the European Court of Human Rights. On that occasion, the difference that exists between public and private personalities was pointed out, as well as the doubts that may arise from the distinction between factual statements and value judgments. When it comes to the right to privacy, the author referred to the importance of honour and reputation, and on that occasion reminded of the “double” presence of these values. In one case it is Art. 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights, and in another the case law of the European Court of Human Rights regarding the meaning of the term of the right to privacy from Art. 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. Solutions in domestic law and case law are analyzed, and special attention is paid to one case in which the relationship between freedom of expression and violation of honor and reputation was discussed. The specificity of this situation is reflected, inter alia, in the fact that we are talking about university professors. The author used the normative, comparative and historical method when writing the paper.


2021 ◽  
pp. 125
Author(s):  
GULNAZ AYDIN RZAYEVA ◽  
AYTAKIN NAZIM IBRAHIMOVA

The development of new technologies also has an impact on human rights. In the previous “epochs” of global information society, it was stated that that traditional rights can be exercised online. For instance, in 2012 (and again in 2014 and 2016), the UN Human Rights Council emphasized that ‘the same rights granted to people, so to speak, in an “offline” manner, must be protected online as well’. This, in its turn, implicitly brought to the reality that the new technetronic society did not create new rights. Though, we should take into consideration that in the digital world national legislative norms that guarantee the confidentiality of personal data often do not catch up with the technological development and, thus, can’t ensure confidentiality online. Therefore, the impact of digitalization on human rights within the frames of international and national laws should be broadly analysed and studied. The article’s objective is to analyze the impact of new technologies on human rights in the context of the right to be forgotten and right to privacy. Because the development of new technologies is more closely linked to the security of personal data. With the formation of the right to be forgotten, it is the issue of ensuring the confidentiality of certain contents of personal data as a result of the influence of the time factor. The authors conclude that, the right to be forgotten was previously defended more in the context of the right to privacy. However, they cannot be considered equal rights. The right to be forgotten stems from a person’s desire to develop and continue his or her life independently without being the object of criticism for any negative actions he or she has committed in the past. If the right to privacy contains generally confidential information, the right to be forgotten is understood as the deletion of known information at a certain time and the denial of access to third parties. Thus, the right to be forgotten is not included in the right to privacy, and can be considered an independent right. The point is that the norms of the international and national documents, which establish fundamental human rights and freedoms, do not regulate issues related to the right to be forgotten. The right to be forgotten should be limited to the deletion of information from the media and Internet information resources. This is not about the complete destruction of information available in state information systems. Another conclusion of authors is that the media and Internet information resources sometimes spread false information. In this case, there will be no content of the right to be forgotten. Because the main thing is that the information that constitutes the content of the right to be forgotten must be legal, but after some time it has lost its significance. The scope of information included in the content of the right to be forgotten should not only be related to the conviction, but also to other special personal data (for example, the fact of divorce).


Author(s):  
José Poças Rascão ◽  
Nuno Gonçalo Poças

The article is about human rights freedom of expression, the right to privacy, and ethics. Technological development (internet and social networks) emphasizes the issue of dialectics and poses many challenges. It makes the theoretical review, the history of human rights through and reference documents, an analysis of the concepts of freedom, privacy, and ethics. The internet and social networks pose many problems: digital data, people's tracks, the surveillance of citizens, the social engineering of power, online social networks, e-commerce, spaces of trust, and conflict.


Author(s):  
Luis Javier MIERES MIERES

LABURPENA: Lan-harremanen arloan funtsezkoa den intimitatearen eskubidea babesteak jurisprudentzia konstituzional zabala eta aberatsa eragin du. Intimitate-eskubideak babesten duen eremuaren baitan, intimitatearen zentzu sendoa (edo gizarteak onartzen duena) eta zentzu ahula dago (intimitate subjektiboa). Biak ala biak proiektatzen dira lan-prestazioan, enpresen zaintza-eta kontrol-ahalmenak mugatuz, eta proportzionaltasunaren printzipioa betearaziz. EKaren 18.1 artikuluak ez du babesten bizitza pribatuaren askatasuna esan ahal zaiona, baina jurisprudentzia konstituzionalak hainbat teknikaren bidez babesten ditu langileen nortasunaren garapen librearen zenbait alderdi, zuzenean bizitza pribatuarekin lotuak. RESUMEN: La protección del derecho fundamental a la intimidad en el ámbito de las relaciones laborales ha dado lugar a una amplia y rica jurisprudencia constitucional. Dentro del ámbito protegido por el derecho a la intimidad cabe distinguir entre intimidad en sentido fuerte (o intimidad socialmente reconocida) y en sentido débil (intimidad subjetivamente reservada). Ambas manifestaciones del derecho se proyectan sobre el desarrollo de la prestación laboral imponiendo límites a los poderes empresariales de vigilancia y control, cuyo ejercicio debe ajustarse al principio de proporcional. Aunque el artículo 18.1 CE no protege lo que puede denominarse la libertad de la vida privada, la jurisprudencia constitucional ha articulado distintas técnicas a fin de amparar ciertas manifestaciones del libre desarrollo de la personalidad de los trabajadores directamente vinculadas con la vida privada. ABSTRACT: The protection of the fundamental right to privacy in the area of the work relations has caused a rich and wide-ranging constitutional jurisprudence. In the protected area for the right to privacy, it can be distinguished among a hard privacy (or socially recognized privacy) and a weak privacy (privacy subjectively reserved). Both manifestations of the right to privacy are projected on the workplace and they limit the entrepreneurial powers of surveillance and control, the exercise of which it has to fit the principle of proportionality. Although article 18.1 CE does not protect what can be denominated the freedom of the private life, the constitutional jurisprudence has articulated different techniques in order to protect certain manifestations of the free development of the personality of theworkers directly linked to the private life.


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