Policy & Law

eco Association on the Digital Omnibus: Europe Promises Regulatory Relief but Leaves Key Barriers to AI in Place

Europe must not squander its economic potential in the global AI race due to a lack of legal certainty and unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles. That is why, following the EU Member States’ agreement on a common position regarding the Digital Omnibus, eco Association is calling for a clear legal framework for AI training and proportionate data protection obligations.

date 2026/10/22

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Policy & Law

eco Survey: Companies in Germany Are Deploying AI Agents Under Controlled Conditions – Blanket Calls to Slow AI Development Miss the Mark

A recent survey conducted by the market research institute Civey among 500 companies on behalf of eco – Association of the Internet Industry shows that companies are already addressing this challenge in practice by setting clear boundaries and implementing safety mechanisms.

date 2026/10/19

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Policy & Law

eco on the German Federal Government’s Key Proposals for Protecting Children and Young People Online: A European Solution Instead of National Transitional Rules

eco – Association of the Internet Industry welcomes the German federal government’s increased focus on promoting media literacy among children and young people in the key proposals adopted today. However, eco Association calls for a European solution to establish a minimum age for using social networks and sees a need for further action to support and strengthen established complaints offices.

date 2026/10/19

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Policy & Law

eco on IP Address Retention: Another Attempt, the Same Problems

On the occasion of today's public hearing of the German Bundestag's Committee on Legal Affairs on the planned retention of IP addresses, eco – Association of the Internet Industry has once again warned against a disproportionate obligation to retain data indiscriminately. The German federal government's draft legislation provides for IP addresses and other data required to identify users to be retained for a period of three months as a general rule.

date 2026/10/08

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Policy & Law

10 Years of the Internet Policy Forum: Balanced Regulation and an Innovation-Friendly Framework Are Key to Germany’s Digital Capacity to Act

For the tenth time, eco discussed with representatives from politics and industry at yesterday’s Internet Policy Forum in Berlin what conditions Germany needs to create by 2030 to strengthen its digital capacity to act.

date 2026/10/07

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Policy & Law

Ahead of Cabinet Decision: eco – Association of the Internet Industry Calls for Effective Protection Against Digital Violence Without Overblocking

Ahead of tomorrow’s cabinet discussion on the proposed law against digital violence, eco is calling for effective protection for those affected – without overblocking or additional bureaucratic burdens for service providers. In particular, eco sees a need for further clarification regarding the interaction with the Digital Services Act, the proposed account suspension measures and the definition of new criminal offences.

date 2026/10/06

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Policy & Law

eco on the Hearing on the Cybersecurity Act

Following today’s hearing of the Committee on Internal Affairs on the Act to Strengthen Cybersecurity, eco – Association of the Internet Industry continues to see a considerable need for improvements. The planned interventions in IT systems and data traffic raise fundamental questions regarding proportionality, technical feasibility and oversight under the rule of law. Among other things, public authorities are to be able to redirect or record data traffic, delete or alter data in IT systems and intervene in domain name resolution.

date 2026/10/06

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Policy & Law

New German Federal Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information (BfDI) Hennemann: eco Association anticipates clear impetus for modern data law

eco Association welcomes Prof. Dr Moritz Hennemann as he takes office as German Federal Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information (BfDI), facing important reforms in data protection supervision and data law.

date 2026/09/30

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Policy & Law

eco on the Hearing on Digital Investigative Powers: The Internet Must Not Become a Biometric Search Space

Reliability of automated matches and evidential robustness remain unclear eco calls for fundamental revision of the draft acts  Berlin, 21 September 2026 – On the occasion of today’s hearing of the Committee on Internal Affairs on the planned digital investigative powers, eco – Association of the Internet Industry...

date 2026/09/21

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Policy & Law

eco on the EU Kids Act: “Child Protection Requires a Clear Direction in EU Law”

eco is calling for clear responsibilities, a coherent legal framework and the avoidance of duplicate regulation wherever possible. The European Commission plans to officially present its draft “EU Kids Act” tomorrow, Thursday. Initial details of the planned EU rules to strengthen the protection of children are already available.

date 2026/09/16

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Policy & Law

eco on the Prien Commission’s Closing Conference: No Patchwork Approach to Child Protection – Germany Must Back a European Solution

With the expiry of the temporary derogation for voluntary chat monitoring on 3 April 2026, there is a risk of a legal gap arising in the European Union with regard to the voluntary detection of child sexual abuse material on the Internet. After the Council of the European Union and the European Parliament failed to agree on an extension of the derogation, pressure is mounting to find a swift and long-term solution for voluntary proactive measures by service providers as part of the trilogue negotiations on the CSAM Regulation.

date 2026/09/09

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Policy & Law

eco Board Member on the Cyberattack Against Berlin: “The State Must Not Exempt Itself from Cybersecurity Requirements”

The August cyberattack on parts of Berlin’s state administration network and the publication of the stolen data on 4 September demonstrate, in the view of eco – Association of the Internet Industry, how dangerous differing security standards for the public and private sectors can be.

date 2026/09/08

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Policy & Law

eco Firmly Rejects SPD Proposal for an AI Tax: “AI must not put Germany at a competitive disadvantage”

At its closed-door meeting today, the SPD parliamentary group in the German Bundestag intends to adopt new guidelines on the use of AI in the workplace. Among other things, it plans to impose higher taxes on productivity gains from AI and on large technology companies.

date 2026/09/04

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Policy & Law

eco ahead of the cabinet retreat: removing barriers to investment in Germany

eco is calling for concrete measures at the cabinet retreat to boost competitiveness and technological sovereignty – with better investment conditions for digital infrastructure, less bureaucracy and practical AI rules to unlock 96 billion Euro in value creation potential in industry.

date 2026/08/21

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Policy & Law

BND Reform: Vulnerabilities Must Not Become a Tool for Intelligence Service Access

eco has warned of new cyber risks arising from the BND reform and has criticised, in particular, the handling of vulnerabilities, the role of the BSI and the BND’s expanded powers to intervene within Germany. The association is calling for tighter legal limits and effective independent prior scrutiny – particularly in relation to automated and AI-supported measures.

date 2026/08/12

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