Protecting citizens, preserving rights

How can law enforcement make effective use of data and technology while ensuring that fundamental rights and the rule of law remain protected?
This question was at the heart of the 17th Europol Data Protection Experts Network (EDEN) conference, held in Lisbon, Portugal, on 22 and 23 September 2026 under the theme ‘Do Not Cross: Protecting Citizens, Preserving Rights’.
The event brought together over 170 participants from across Europe, including law enforcement officials, data protection officers, representatives of national data protection authorities and academics. The conference was organised by Europol’s Data Protection Experts Network (EDEN) in cooperation with the Academy of European Law (ERA), and co-hosted by the Portuguese Sistema de Segurança Interna and Polícia Judiciária.
Finding the boundaries
At the opening of the conference, Jürgen Ebner, Acting Executive Director of Europol, Wojciech Wiewiorowski, the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS), and Carlos Cabreiro, National Director of the Portuguese Judicial Police, highlighted the challenges law enforcement faces in an increasingly digital and data-driven environment.
Jürgen Ebner
Acting Executive Director of Europol
Freedom and security are twin pillars of democracy. At Europol, our responsibility is to protect both, ensuring that our actions are necessary, proportionate, and rooted in fundamental rights. This conference challenges us to ask a fundamental question: how do we benefit from the opportunities of technology to protect citizens while safeguarding the principles we defend? Innovative law enforcement requires us to push what is possible but never to lose sight of our purpose and responsibilities. Europol stands for strength, innovation, and discipline: protecting Europe while upholding the values that define it.
Carlos Cabreiro
National Director of the Portuguese Judicial Police
Proper data processing is no longer merely an administrative matter or a simple regulatory compliance exercise. Nowadays, it is an integral part of modern criminal investigation. It is a quality factor in information. It is a tool for strengthening institutional trust. It is a guarantee of evidence admissibility and credibility. It is an essential part of international cooperation. And it is, above all, an actual expression of respect for human dignity.
Wojciech Wiewiorowski
European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS)
I believe that in these times we are living in, the protection of personal data becomes more important than ever. The role of data protection extends far beyond the realm of privacy and indeed it often becomes a safeguard for democracy itself. The European project is built on the proposition that our fundamental rights and democratic freedoms are what defines us and the ultimate source of our strength.
Under the overarching theme ‘Do Not Cross’, participants examined where the boundaries should lie between innovation and intrusion, operational effectiveness and privacy, and security and the rights protected by democratic societies.
Discussions throughout the two-day event highlighted the increasingly complex relationship between security, technology, data protection, and fundamental rights.
Safeguarding European sovereignty in the cloud
The first of the various EDEN panels examined the implications of cloud technologies for law enforcement. Experts discussed the importance of maintaining appropriate levels of data protection and cybersecurity while ensuring that law enforcement can benefit from technological developments and secure digital infrastructure.
The second day of the conference turned to several emerging challenges for law enforcement. Participants examined violent nihilistic tendencies online, including networks referred to as ‘The Com’, and discussed the implications of these developments for law enforcement and data protection. A Europol expert working on Project COMPASS provided insights into the realities investigators around the world face in tackling this phenomenon, leaving conference participants visibly shaken.
The rapid development of artificial intelligence was another major theme and one panel explored how AI is changing the production, use, and assessment of digital evidence and what this means for law enforcement.
The conference also addressed cybersecurity resilience in the context of war. The panel ‘Resilience in Times of War: The Ukrainian Experience’ brought together perspectives from Ukraine and academia to examine the challenges of maintaining resilient systems and protecting critical information in an environment of armed conflict. Since the start of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, the EDEN events have become a regular venue for Ukrainian representatives to share insight into the daily challenge of living in a society facing constant military hostility.
Protecting people and information
The discussions also explored how the principles of necessity, proportionality, security, and respect for fundamental rights apply to some of the most sensitive areas of law enforcement. Because data protection can have particularly direct consequences when the information processed by law enforcement concerns individuals whose safety may be at risk.
During the EDEN Talk ‘A Matter of Survival’, participants considered the specific challenges of protecting witnesses in an increasingly data-driven environment, where the way sensitive information is processed and protected can have direct consequences for an individual’s safety.
The final EDEN panel focused on the role of Data Protection Officers in helping law enforcement navigate operational requirements alongside ethical considerations, security, and data protection.
A shared commitment to data protection
As technology continues to reshape law enforcement, sustained dialogue between practitioners, experts, and policymakers will be essential to ensure that innovation and operational effectiveness remain grounded in the principles of necessity, proportionality, security, and respect for fundamental rights.
About EDEN
The Europol Data Protection Experts Network (EDEN) brings together experts from law enforcement and other relevant communities to facilitate the exchange of knowledge, experience and best practices on data protection and cybersecurity.
Through its conferences, webinars and other activities, EDEN provides a platform for discussion on the challenges and opportunities arising from technological developments and the increasing use of data in law enforcement.

Facts Only

* The 17th Europol Data Protection Experts Network (EDEN) conference was held in Lisbon, Portugal, on September 22 and 23, 2026.
* Participants included law enforcement officials, data protection officers, national data protection authorities, and academics.
* Jürgen Ebner, Acting Executive Director of Europol, Wojciech Wiewiorowski, European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS), and Carlos Cabreiro, National Director of the Portuguese Judicial Police, participated in the opening.
* Discussions examined cloud technologies implications for law enforcement and data protection.
* Participants discussed violent nihilistic tendencies online, including networks like ‘The Com’.
* Artificial intelligence was a major theme concerning its change to digital evidence production, use, and assessment.
* A panel addressed cybersecurity resilience in times of war, focusing on the Ukrainian experience.
* Discussions covered applying necessity, proportionality, security, and fundamental rights to sensitive law enforcement areas.
* The event focused on protecting witnesses in a data-driven environment and the role of Data Protection Officers.

Executive Summary

Law enforcement faces challenges in a digital environment regarding the use of data and technology while upholding fundamental rights and the rule of law, which was the focus of the 17th Europol Data Protection Experts Network (EDEN) conference in Lisbon on September 22 and 23, 2026. Participants included law enforcement officials, data protection officers, national authorities, and academics. Discussions centered on balancing innovation with privacy, examining areas like safeguarding data in the cloud, addressing emerging threats such as online violent tendencies, the impact of artificial intelligence on digital evidence, and cybersecurity resilience during wartime. Speakers emphasized that proper data processing is essential for criminal investigation and respects human dignity, positioning data protection as a safeguard for democratic freedoms. The event concluded with a shared commitment that sustained dialogue among all stakeholders is necessary to ensure operational effectiveness remains grounded in principles of necessity, proportionality, security, and fundamental rights.

Full Take

The conference structure suggests a tension between operational demands and normative constraints regarding technology use in security. The focus on 'Do Not Cross' frames the central conflict as a boundary problem: where does technological capability intersect with established rights? The inclusion of specific, challenging topics—such as online extremism ('The Com'), AI in evidence, and wartime resilience—suggests that theoretical privacy discussions are being tested against acute, real-world operational pressures. The involvement of bodies like Europol and the EDPS indicates an attempt to establish a cross-cutting standard for legitimacy, moving the conversation beyond simple compliance towards embedding rights into operational methodology. The shift from data processing as a mere administrative task to viewing it as "an actual expression of respect for human dignity" signals a necessary paradigm shift in how security is conceptualized. This setup suggests that the primary difficulty lies not in the technology itself, but in institutionalizing the proportionality principle when facing complex, rapidly evolving threats where speed and security are often prioritized by operational necessity.
Bridge Questions: If operational effectiveness consistently demands quicker data access, what measurable criteria can be established to prove that necessary intrusions into privacy boundaries remain proportionate? How should accountability mechanisms evolve to handle emergent risks like AI-driven evidence assessment without stifling innovation? What structural reforms are needed to ensure data protection principles are not treated as external constraints on enforcement capability, but as foundational operational parameters?

Sentinel — Human

Confidence

The text appears to be a carefully synthesized summary of an international expert conference, exhibiting the structured, authoritative tone of human journalism rather than generic AI generation.

Signals Detected

Moderate sentence length variance; natural flow of complex ideas.

Strong focus on thematic progression (challenges, specific panels, overarching principles); sounds like synthesized conference reporting.

Attribution of quotes/statements directly to named individuals from official bodies; structure mirrors typical expert panel summaries.

No immediate signs of fabricated statistics or context that require external verification; the content synthesizes known institutional concerns effectively.

Human Indicators

The nuanced interplay between legal and technical concepts (necessity, proportionality, sovereign rights) suggests deep domain knowledge, typical of expert-driven reporting.

The narrative structure follows a logical progression from setting the stage to specific thematic discussions and concluding with a call for dialogue.