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International investigative bureau in Vienna to combat “migrant smuggling”
On 4 May 2016, the Austrian Minister of the Interior Wolfgang Sobotka opened the “Joint Operational Office against Human Smuggling Networks” (JOO) in Vienna. In a statement, the Austrian Federal Ministry of the Interior stated that the institution was an “international investigative bureau against human smuggling”. The centre has an initial complement of 38 staff […]
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New Europol regulation due to enter into force from May 2017 – oversight is likely to remain superficial
On 1 May 2017, the new regulation on Europol will enter into force. The compromise agreed on in the framework of the trilogue procedure lays down new more detailed provisions on oversight of the activities of Europol by the European Parliament. Article 88 (2), sentence 3 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European […]
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New FRONTEX agency: satellite reconnaissance and drones over the Mediterranean
The EU is taking its maritime surveillance to a new level. The three agencies responsible for coastal and maritime surveillance are to be merged. 81 million euros has been earmarked for unmanned aerial vehicles alone, with hundreds of millions also being spent on the necessary satellite capabilities. The money is flowing into the coffers of […]
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Europol to cooperate with new European intelligence service center
European intelligence services are establishing a “Counter Terrorism Centre” in the Dutch city The Hague. The centre belongs to the “Counter Terrorism Group” (CTG) that was founded by the so called Club of Berne in 2001. It consists of domestic intelligence services from all European member states plus Norway and Switzerland. France and Italy are […]
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“Terrorist material” online: further successful removal requests by Europol
Europol’s Internet Referral Unit is more active than had previously been known. The partnership with the internet industry is now to be expanded further, with the aim of establishing a Joint Referral Platform for the police and private companies and developing “counter-narratives”. A document posted online by the British civil-rights organisation Statewatch provides new information […]
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EU adds facial recognition capabilities to police databases
Last week, the European Commission published its proposal to recast the EURODAC Regulation, which includes plans for longer storage periods, an expansion of data categories and comparison capabilities, and mandatory fingerprinting and photographing. To date, EURODAC has been used for comparison of fingerprints. Now the system is also to store facial images and facial recognition […]