If you believe the words sometimes attributed to Gandhi, law is codified ethics. But effective laws and standards of ethics are guidelines accepted by members of a society, and these require a social consensus. I believe that technology is changing or at the very least influencing our ethics and it’s a phenomenon we need to urgently address.

The ancient city of Marrakech was founded by the Almoravid dynasty at the beginning of the 11th century, as a centre for trade and craftsmanship. One century later, another mythical city, Timbuktu, was founded for similar reasons, in what is now known as the sub-Saharan state of Mali. As the location of the 38th International Privacy Conference, Marrakech aimed to set a precedent once again, this time through opening up the doors to privacy beyond the western world. The Conference took place from 17-20 October this year and the EDPS once again played an active part.