Summary of the annual meeting of the European Union Innovation Hub

We highly recommend reading the coverage of the event, which took place on September 13-14 in Brussels. This year’s EU Innovation Hub meeting was devoted to discussing topics related to “Shaping Responsible Solutions for Internal Security”.

The EU Innovation Hub is an initiative associating projects related to internal security. It is an inter-sectoral platform enabling cooperation of all involved entities. Its primary goal is to coordinate and create space for sharing the achievements of ideas and solutions that are being developed and implemented. It also works to provide effective innovations supporting the activities of, among others: justice and law enforcement agencies, and offers solutions in the field of border security, migration and asylum. The Hub is composed of various EU Justice and Home Affairs Agencies, the European Commission (including Joint Research Centre), the Council General Secretariat and the EU Counter Terrorism Coordinator.

This year’s meeting was divided into two parts. On the first day, four discussion panels were held,. The following topics were discussed: fundamental rights compliant use of data, innovations in monitoring and surveillance, digital investigation tools, as well as issues of justice and accountability. The second day of the event was full of expert discussions on encryption, with particular emphasis on vulnerability management.

The aim of the session was to address the Hub’s tasking from the Standing Committee on Operational Cooperation on Internal Security (COSI), and to propose a way forward supported by innovations. Based on two concrete examples of on-going EU projects in the field of encryption, the panellists recommended creating synergies between public authorities and private operators, as well as between law enforcement and judicial authorities of different countries. It was considered the only way forward to combat the cross-border criminal exploitation of encrypted communication platforms. The participants discussed the increasingly critical issue of accessing digital evidence within criminal investigations, while providing the best possible protection for digital systems and fundamental rights.

An article on PPHS involvement in the functioning of the Innovation Hub has been published on our website. A detailed description of the event and explanation of its significance can be found under this link. Moreover the organizers prepared a video summarizing the meeting in Brussels, as well as a report presenting the topics discussed during the discussion panels.