On 1 November 2018, Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (“SFC”) issued a statement and circular that expanded its regulatory reach over virtual asset activities. Previously, the SFC’s position was that any activities related to virtual assets (e.g. cryptocurrencies, assetbacked
A political agreement was reached between the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union (EU) and the European Commission on the EU Cybersecurity Act (Act) and announced on December 10, 2018. The pace of the adoption of the
Although the EU General Data Protection Regulation (the “GDPR”) entered into force on 25 May 2018, and the obligations under the GDPR have since taken effect, there remain significant uncertainties as regards enforcement. In particular, the application of the GDPR’s
On 13 November 2018, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled that the taste of a food product could not be classified as a ”work” within the meaning of Directive 2001/29/EC and that national member state legislation
On 21 November 2018, the data protection authority of Baden-Württemberg, Germany (the “authority”) imposed a fine of EUR 20,000 against a German social media provider (the “company”) for failing to encrypt user passwords. The authority’s decision marks the first time
On 7 November 2018, the data protection authority of the Free State of Bavaria, Germany, issued a press release that, now that the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has been in effect for six months, the authority will intensify
In Germany, companies offering security-related services have to provide to the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (Bundesanstalt für Finanzaufsicht, “BaFin”) information regarding the identity of staff responsible for, inter alia, providing investment advice (Section 87 of the German Securities Trading Act, “WpHG”).
On 11 October 2018, the Music Modernization Act (“MMA”) was signed into law. It effects a sweeping overhaul of the compulsory mechanical license mechanism set forth in 17 U.S.C. §115—among other significant changes. While many in the industry have been
On 5 September 2018, the German Data Protection Conference (Datenschutzkonferenz – “DSK”) provided new guidance on the interpretation of Art. 13 of the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) in the context of medical treatment. The Data Protection Conference consists of
As automobiles are becoming part of the Internet of Things, “connected” technologies are increasingly deployed to enhance the safe operation of autonomous vehicles. These “intelligent” vehicles rely on an ecosystem of proprietary and third-party components to gather, analyze and react
