The EU legal framework for the protection of personal data is of key importance when it comes to better controlling the processing of personal data while ensuring an adequate level of protection. But even the best legislative efforts cannot keep up with the pace of innovative technologies and business models as well as geopolitical developments that are challenging the way personal data is processed and privacy is protected in the EU and beyond; it is therefore of utmost importance to analyse what is at stake, where the threats come from and what can and should be done about them.

For years, the direction of development of EU digital policy seemed clear: in the face of the many challenges, Germany and the European Union would lead the way with regulation in order to protect their citizens and European values, while at the same time driving digital innovation and thus making the European Union a serious digital player once again. Numerous regulations - on data protection, digital services, data utilisation, artificial intelligence and the European Health Data Space - bear witness to this policy.

However, EU digital policy has recently come under pressure: Under the current US president, the legal framing of the digital sector in Europe is becoming a target of American trade and geopolitics in order to influence European regulations, prevent the application of unpopular legal requirements and, in particular, to avert measures against US companies in the form of fines and competition penalties.

On the one hand, this presents the EU and Germany with the question of the extent to which existing regulations can continue to be enforced in the face of threats and, on the other hand, influences the discussion on how digital policy can be further developed. In terms of enforcing existing laws, the EU institutions have so far proved steadfast. However, there are also other developments: After years of stalled negotiations, the EU Commission has withdrawn its proposal for an E-Privacy-regulation in its new work programme. Numerous digital regulations are to be revised under the heading of ‘reducing bureaucracy’. The AI Liability Directive has also been withdrawn. Instead, computing capacities and the promotion of AI are to be expanded with an AI Continent Action Plan.

In addition, other challenges of digitalisation remain unresolved: platforms such as social networks continue to collect and share personal data that is used to analyse and influence behaviour. Providers of AI systems for general applications continue to access personal and other protected data without being asked in order to generate their AI models. The question of how to minimise the risks of widespread use of AI for society remains open for research and the responsible authorities - even though the EU is preparing new instruments against unfair practices in the internet advertising industry, including the Digital Fairness Act.

In view of the challenges discussed, the following questions arise from the interdisciplinary perspective of research on data protection, privacy, data and digital policy, for example:

• How can EU digital policy be driven forward despite - or perhaps because of - the turbulent global situation? In which direction?
• What about the Brussels effect of European digital regulation? Is the short-term view perhaps clouding the picture - while digital regulation continues to be expanded worldwide?
• What does the end of the E-Privacy-Regulation mean? How can the protection of personal data be organised in modern communication structures? What alternatives are there?
• What does research say about the practice of freedom of expression and the fight against disinformation on the basis of current digital laws such as the Digital Services Act? Does the law serve more to protect those affected (e.g. by threats) or to censor unpopular opinions?
• How competitive is the European Union when it comes to data-based innovation and artificial intelligence? Where is there a need for action?
• Which platforms are particularly powerful and risky? Which ones should we focus on - against the backdrop of other government tasks and a pragmatic solution?
• Do we ‘only’ need to enforce the existing regulations more strongly? If so, how? What conditions are necessary for this?
• What can we learn from other countries? Do they have better conditions for success? Can we introduce these here? What alternatives do we have?
• How reliable are technologies that - similar to Privacy by Design or Privacy by Default - aim to identify lies such as deepfakes (also known as ‘Truth by Default’)?
• Do we need to rely more on our own EU platforms and build them up quickly? What are the prerequisites for this? Organisationally, financially ...?
• What kind of media expertise is (particularly) needed? Which target groups are particularly important? How long does it take for these measures to take effect?
• What measures are needed to prevent digital blackmail material and increase digital sovereignty?

We invite proposals for contributions (presentations and posters) on the general topic, but also on all related topics (data protection, privacy, surveillance, network policy) from academic and industrial researchers, political and economic decision-makers, data protection authorities, non-governmental organisations and civil society as well as from all relevant disciplines (including technical, social and engineering disciplines, law, economics, sociology, psychology, philosophy and communication science).

Submission, Review, Publication

Proposals can be submitted until 30 June 2025 in the form of a meaningful ‘extended abstract’ (length: 500-1,000 words) via the EasyChair conference management system: https://easychair.org/conferences?conf=plattformprivatheit2

The evaluation and selection of presentations and posters for the conference programme is carried out by the programme committee (see below) and the advisory board of the Platform for Privacy.

Selected papers will be published after the conference in an edited volume to be published in the series „Privatheit und Selbstbestimmung in der digitalen Welt“ by Nomos-Verlag, Baden-Baden. Poster presenters have the opportunity to publish a short contribution in the Posterproceedings, which will be published at the time of the conference.

The conference language is German, contributions in English are possible by arrangement.

Important Dates

Deadline for the submission of abstracts: ....................................................... June 30, 2025 (AoE)

Registration for the conference: ............................................................................ From July 1, 2025

Notification of acceptance: ....................................................................................... July 15, 2025

Publication of the conference programme: ...................................................... End of July 2025

Conference: ....................................................................................................................... October 1-2, 2025

Submission of contributions for the conference proceedings: ................ February 28, 2026

Publication date of the conference proceedings: ........................................... Around September 2026

Responsible persons

Programme Committee

Michael Friedewald, Alexander Roßnagel, Murat Karaboga, Christian Geminn

Science Communication

Barbara Ferrarese

Organisation

Sabine Muhr

Contact us

Plattform.Privatheit@isi.fraunhofer.de