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This is the event site for the Israel tech Policy Institute program at 2017 CyberWeek. Please visit the Institute's new site for current activities.

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Privacy, Security, Trust:

The Challenges for Democracies

Tel Aviv
June 25, 2017

The Conference

Democratic societies under threat rely on intelligence and law enforcement agencies to maintain security and protect their borders. At the same time, they must incorporate policies, processes and tools to ensure respect for privacy and civil liberties. Big data collection and analytics capabilities unlock tremendous economic and societal value. But as they use citizens’ and consumers’ information, governments and businesses must maintain individuals’ privacy rights and ensure information is accurate, timely and secure. The workshop will explore the fragile balance between national security and individual rights in an environment where technological breakthroughs can be put to good or malevolent ends. It will consider the role of private sector companies in protecting private and public infrastructure while respecting privacy and civil liberties. It will address the role of government in protecting critical infrastructure and valuable technologies while respecting individual rights.

The Agenda

Welcome and Introduction to U.S.-Israel Tech Policy Institute
9:00-9:15

Jules Polonetsky, Future of Privacy Forum and Omer Tene, International Assn of Privacy Professionals

The Cyber Challenge
9:15-9:30

Dr. Eviatar Matania, Director General of Israel National Cyber Directorate (IL)

Justice, freedom and tolerance in cyberspace: building trust and addressing risks
9:30-9:45

VÄ›ra Jourová, Commissioner for Justice, Consumers and Gender Equality, European

Commission (EU)

Privacy and Data Security in a Time of Rapid Technological and Social Change
9:45-10:00

Terrell McSweeny, Commissioner, Federal Trade Commission (US)

Morning Panels

10:00-11:00
Smart Privacy Regulation: Developing a Complete Toolbox

Session organized by Israeli Law, Information and Technologies Authority

Legislative reform in Europe, the change of Administration in the United States, and a push for new legislation in Israel portend a new approach to privacy regulation over the next few years. On one side of the Atlantic, European data regulators will expand their toolbox with unprecedented powers, including significant fines and investigatory authority. In the U.S., the Federal Trade Commission will likely refocus efforts on cases where privacy infringements cause “substantial injury” to consumers. In Israel, new data security regulations introduce breach notification requirements and additional laws may be on the way. Commentators predict state attorneys general will respond by increasing enforcement activity. In the rest of the world, regulators will adapt to the new approaches pursued by the large trading blocks, and address new challenges such as data localization. In this session, policymakers from Israel, the EU and U.S. discuss regulatory strategies in an environment of technological and legal change.

​

Moderator:

Omer Tene, VP Research, International Association of Privacy Professionals (IL)

 

Speakers:

Karolina Mojzesowicz, Deputy Head of Unit Data Protection, European Commission (EU)

Terrell McSweeny, Commissioner, Federal Trade Commission (US)

Alon Bachar, Head of Israeli Law, Information and Technologies Authority (IL)

Coffee Break
11:00-11:15
Being “Adequate”: GDPR Implementation in Israel
11:15-12:15

The European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is the most extensive reform of global privacy law in a generation. In May 2018, companies all over the world will have to comply with the new framework, including rules on data portability, profiling and consent, and a new “right to be forgotten”. At the same time, in its Schrems decision, the Court of Justice of the European Union struck down the EU-U.S. Safe Harbor arrangement and tightened the requirements for crossborder data transfers casting doubt on the validity of additional data transfer mechanisms, including existing adequacy decisions. Will Israel’s adequacy status withstand regulatory and legal scrutiny? What do Israeli companies and the Israeli government need to do to prepare for the GDPR?

 

Moderator:

Michael Birnhack, Professor, Tel Aviv University (IL)

 

Speakers:

Bruno Gencarelli, Head of the International Data Flows and Protection Unit, European Commission (EU)

Orly Friedman Marton, Head of Legal and Corporate Affairs, Microsoft Israel (IL)

Roy Schondorf, Deputy Attorney General, International Affairs (IL)

Lunch Break
12:15-13:30

Afternoon Keynotes

Behind the Scenes: Power Dynamics on and of Social Networks
13:30-13:45

Karine Nahon, President, Israel Internet Association (IL)

13:45-14:45
Staging war on social media

Over the past decade, the battle over public opinion has shifted from broadcast channels to social media outlets. From the Arab Spring in the Middle East to Black Lives Matter in the U.S., Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp are utilized to foment dissent, organize demonstrations and energize political movements. In Israel, an increasingly radicalized public debate features calls for boycott and counter-boycotts, incitement for uprising and violence, and racial and political slurs. In this heated environment, social networking operators are forced to deal with conflicting requests to delete or promote information. How should executives address the fraught political debate? Where does the line cross between political speech and racism or terrorism and incitement to violence?

​

Moderator: Jules Polonetsky, CEO, Future of Privacy Forum (US)

 

Speakers:

Brittan Heller, Director of Technology and Society, Anti-Defamation League (US)

Jordana Cutler, Head of Policy, Israel, Facebook (IL)  

Yoram Hacohen, CEO, Israel Internet Association (IL)

Alexander Tsesis, Professor, Loyola University Chicago School of Law (US)

14:45-15:45
The reemergence of the crypto wars

The recent faceoff between Apple and the FBI over access to the smartphone content of one of the San Bernardino shooters has once again spawned a public debate about the right balance between privacy and national security. Law enforcement agencies have warned against communications networks “going dark,” while civil society voices cautioned against erosion of civil liberties through a weakening of encryption and expansion of government surveillance. As liberal democracies at the forefront of the battle against international terrorism, Israel and the United States developed deep expertise in technological, operational and policy aspects of surveillance and cybersecurity. At the same time, scientists in both countries led the development of strong encryption tools, including the most commonly used algorithms enabling the daily operation of the market for e-commerce.

 

In this session, leading policymakers discuss the role of encryption in commercial networks, products and systems, and the conditions for government access to private sector information.

 

Moderator:

Liron Tzur-Neumann, U.S.-Israel Tech Policy Institute (IL)

 

Speakers:

Amit Ashkenazi, Legal Adviser, Israel National Cyber Directorate (IL)

Chris C. Demchak, Professor, U.S. Naval War College (US)

Ari Schwartz, Managing Director of Cybersecurity Services and Policy, Venable (US)

Nico Van Eijk, Professor, University of Amsterdam (EU)

Closing remarks
15:45-16:00

Jules Polonetsky and Omer Tene

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The US-Israel Tech Policy Institute connects policy leaders in the US, Israel, Europe and around the world.  We organize discussions, projects and research focused on security, privacy, free speech and other areas where government, civil society and industry can work together on the tech policies that will shape our future. 

The inaugural event of the Institute will be a June 25th workshop on Privacy, Security and Trust: The Challenges for Democracies. The event is held in partnership with the 7th Annual International Cybersecurity Conference. The conference, organized by the National Cyber Bureau in Israel’s Prime Minister's Office together with the Blavatnik Interdisciplinary Cyber Research Center (ICRC), draws thousands of cybersecurity leaders from government, industry and academia. The Institute will run a pre-conference workshop in Tel Aviv focused on the re-emergence of the CryptoWars and on the challenges of social media and the news. 

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The US-Israel Tech Policy Institute connects policy leaders in the US, Israel, Europe and around the world.  We organize discussions, projects and research focused on security, privacy, free speech and other areas where government, civil society and industry can work together on the tech policies that will shape our future.
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