Aleš Završnik – författare

Full-scale political change affects every level of a society, but perhaps nowhere as strikingly as in the areas of crime policy and law enforcement. Over the past two decades, the European nations that have moved from totalitarianism toward democracy have come to embody this trend, yet reliable sources on crime and law enforcement in these countries have not been readily accessible to the West.

Representing viewpoints seldom available to outsiders, the contributors to Crime and Transition in Central and Eastern Europe analyze changes in criminal activities and crime control strategies in the region, explain the political background underlying these developments, and assess their long-term social impact. Experts from Slovenia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, the Czech Republic, Poland, Bosnia and Herzegovina discuss the politicization of crime, the ongoing paradoxes regarding civil liberties, and the future of crime policy in comparative and country-specific terms. Among the topics featured in the book: Crime and crime control in transitional countries, politics, the media, and public perception of crime, surveillance: from national security to private industry, penal policy and political change, emerging trends: economic and organized crime, human trafficking, juvenile delinquency, new perspectives on corruption in the region.

With this fascinating insight, Crime and Transition in Central and Eastern Europe is a singular reference for researchers and policymakers in criminology and political science, and historians with a special interest in European affairs and policy.

This interdisciplinary volume critically explores how the ever-increasing use of automated systems is changing policing, criminal justice systems, and military operations at the national and international level. The book examines the ways in which automated systems are beneficial to society, while addressing the risks they represent for human rights.

This book starts with a historical overview of how different types of knowledge have transformed crime control and the security domain, comparing those epistemological shifts with the current shift caused by knowledge produced with high-tech information technology tools such as big data analytics, machine learning, and artificial intelligence. The first part explores the use of automated systems, such as predictive policing and platform policing, in law enforcement. The second part analyzes the use of automated systems, such as algorithms used in sentencing and parole decisions, in courts of law. The third part examines the useand misuse of automated systems for surveillance and social control. The fourth part discusses the use of lethal (semi)autonomous weapons systems in armed conflicts.

T​his book critically explores how and to what extent artificial intelligence (AI) can infringe human rights and/or lead to socially harmful consequences and how to avoid these. The European Union has outlined how it will use big data, machine learning, and AI to tackle a number of inherently social problems, including poverty, climate change, social inequality and criminality. The contributors of this book argue that the developments in AI must take place in an appropriate legal and ethical framework and they make recommendations to ensure that harm and human rights violations are avoided. The book is split into two parts: the first addresses human rights violations and harms that may occur in relation to AI in different domains (e.g. border control, surveillance, facial recognition) and the second part offers recommendations to address these issues. It draws on interdisciplinary research and speaks to policy-makers and criminologists, sociologists, scholars in STS studies, security studies scholars and legal scholars.

This book tackles the regulatory issues of Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) or Remotely-Piloted Aerial Systems (RPAS), which have profound consequences for privacy, security and other fundamental liberties. Collectively known as “drones,” they were initially deployed for military purposes: reconnaissance, surveillance and extrajudicial executions. Today, we are witnessing a growth of their use into the civilian and humanitarian domain. They are increasingly used for goals as diverse as news gathering, aerial inspection of oil refinery flare stacks, mapping of the Amazonian rain-forest, crop spraying and search and rescue operations. 

This work will be of interest to researchers in Criminology and Criminal Justice interested in issues related to surveillance, security, privacy, and technology. It will also provide a criminological background for related legal issues, such as privacy law, aviation law, international criminal law, and comparative law.

Derived from the renowned multi-volume International Encyclopaedia of Laws, this practical guide to information technology law – the law affecting information and communication technology (ICT) – in Slovenia covers every aspect of the subject, including the regulation of digital markets, intellectual property rights in the digital context, relevant competition rules, drafting and negotiating ICT-related contracts, electronic transactions, and cybercrime. Lawyers who handle transnational matters will appreciate the detailed explanation of specific characteristics of practice and procedure.

Following a general introduction, the monograph assembles its information and guidance in six main areas of practice: (1) the regulatory framework of digital markets, including legal aspects of standardization, international private law applied to the online context, telecommunications law, regulation of audio-visual services and online commercial platforms; (2) online public services including e-government, e-health and online voting; (3) contract law with regard to software, hardware, networks and related services, with special attention to case law in this area, rules with regard to electronic evidence, regulation of electronic signatures, online financial services and electronic commerce; (4) software protection, legal protection of databases or chips, and other intellectual property matters; (5) the legal framework regarding cybersecurity and (6) the application of criminal procedure and substantive criminal law in the area of cybercrime.

Its succinct yet scholarly nature, as well as the practical quality of the information it provides, make this monograph a valuable time-saving tool for business and legal professionals alike. Lawyers representing parties with interests in Japan will welcome this very useful guide, and academics and researchers will appreciate its value in the study of comparative law in this relatively new and challenging field.