EU privacy chief calls for public ACTA debate

The European Union's privacy chief has called for transparency in the creation of a global intellectual property trade agreement, which is being negotiated in secret by countries including the US, Australia and the EU.

In an official opinion published on Monday, Peter Hustinx warned that the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) negotiations raise "significant issues as to the impact of the measures taken to combat counterfeiting and piracy on individuals' fundamental rights, and in particular their right to privacy and data protection".