News

Reputation scores are summary assessments of social reputation produced by algorithms through statistical correlations and inferences. They risk reducing a person to the statistical category to which they belong and encouraging them to follow predetermined patterns of behaviour.

These issues will be discussed at a public event during the Smart Life Festival by Elena di Carpegna Brivio, a researcher in Constitutional Law at the University of Milano-Bicocca, and Simone Scagliarini, coordinator of the ECODIGITAL project.

On Friday 18 September 2026, at 10:00, at the Modena offices of Confindustria Emilia – Area Centro, a meeting will be held on The Data Act: Implementation and Reform, bringing together businesses to discuss the practical challenges of legislation imposing data-sharing obligations, with a view to sharing value strategically.

The speakers will be Prof. Simone Scagliarini, scientific coordinator of the ECODIGITAL project, and Dr. Giacomo Menegus, who teach Digital Economy Law – Jean Monnet Module at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia.

On Wednesday 20 May 2026, a seminar will be held at the CGIL offices in Florence, organised in collaboration with Federconsumatori Toscana, SPI-CGIL and Digitalmentis, on The Legal Protection of Consumers in the Digital Economy, examining the main risks associated with online purchases and the protections offered by EU law.

The speakers will be Prof. Simone Scagliarini, scientific coordinator of the ECODIGITAL project, and Dr. Giacomo Menegus, who teach Digital Economy Law – Jean Monnet Module at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia.

On Tuesday 5 May at 09:30 in Rome, at the Società Dante Alighieri, Piazza Firenze 27, a conference entitled The Digital Economy and Consumer Protection will be held to bring together businesses, consumer associations and regulatory authorities to discuss emerging challenges in digital markets and the effectiveness of the response offered by European legislation.

The opening presentations will be delivered by Prof. Simone Scagliarini, the project’s scientific coordinator, Dr. Giacomo Menegus, co-lecturer on the Jean Monnet Module, and Cristiana Tullio of Centro Studi IRCAF, a co-organiser of the event.

The conference will also be live-streamed at the link provided on the flyer. Registration is required and is free of charge.

On Thursday 23 April 2026, at 12:00, online via the Dolly Blended platform, as part of the ECODIGITAL project, co-funded by the European Union, a seminar will be held on “Education and Training in Health and Social Care and Personal Data Protection. The European Legal Framework”.

The event forms part of the work to establish a Knowledge Hub, a research forum built on dialogue between scholars from different disciplines on the development of the digital economy.
The seminar will focus on personal data protection in training programmes for health and social care professionals, using the European regulatory framework to illustrate the key considerations in designing these programmes.

The seminar will be delivered by Prof. Simone Scagliarini, lecturer in Digital Economy Law – Jean Monnet Module in the “Marco Biagi” Department of Economics and scientific coordinator of the ECODIGITAL project. It is intended for students on the course in Labour Law and Training Processes in Health and Social Care Settings (Prof. Alberto Levi).

On Thursday 23 April 2026, at 10:15, online via the Dolly Blended platform, as part of the ECODIGITAL project, co-funded by the European Union, a seminar will be held on “European Privacy Legislation and Distance Learning”.

The event forms part of the work to establish a Knowledge Hub, a research forum built on dialogue between scholars from different disciplines on the development of the digital economy.
The seminar will focus on privacy protection in the provision of online education, also taking account of the latest guidance from the Italian Data Protection Authority. It will discuss the relevant legal requirements and the challenges that a specialist in Digital Education faces when designing educational programmes.

The seminar will be delivered by Prof. Simone Scagliarini, lecturer in Digital Economy Law – Jean Monnet Module in the “Marco Biagi” Department of Economics and scientific coordinator of the ECODIGITAL project. It is intended for students on the course in Labour Law in Digital Contexts (Prof. Alberto Levi).

On Thursday 16 April 2026, at 15:45, in Room H of the “Marco Biagi” Department of Economics, Via A. Fontanelli 11, Second Lieutenant Giuseppe Ciarmiello, commander of the 1st Section of the Privacy Group within the Guardia di Finanza’s Special Unit for Privacy Protection and Technological Fraud, will deliver a seminar on Data Protection and Digital Markets: Lessons from Inspection Practice.

The seminar will explore the main issues arising from the work of the Italian Data Protection Authority’s operational enforcement arm and the risks found in digital markets.

On Tuesday 14 April 2026, at 14:00, in Room A at the Fontanelli teaching site of the “Marco Biagi” Department of Economics (Viale Fontanelli 11), a seminar will be held as part of the ECODIGITAL project, co-funded by the European Union, on “Pseudonymisation and Anonymisation: The Second Life of Personal Data”.

The speaker will be engineer Giuseppe D’Acquisto, a senior official at the Italian Data Protection Authority and national delegate for technological matters at the European Data Protection Board.

On Thursday 9 April 2026, at 15:45, in Room H of the “Marco Biagi” Department of Economics, Via A. Fontanelli 11, lawyer Carlo Rossi Chauvenet, Managing Partner of CRCLEX law firm and a leading data protection expert, will deliver a seminar on Data Sharing: From the Data Act to Data Spaces. This topic is central to recent European legislation, given the importance of access to complete, up-to-date and fit-for-purpose datasets.

As always, the event is free of charge and open to the public.

Dr. Giacomo Menegus, a researcher in Constitutional Law at the “Marco Biagi” Department of Economics, will discuss the protection of developers’ intellectual property, already addressed by Directive 2009/24/EC, also considering the technical issues that may arise.

Prof. Simone Scagliarini, Full Professor of Constitutional Law in the “Marco Biagi” Department of Economics and scientific coordinator of the ECODIGITAL project, will address the quality and governance of data in the development of AI systems, drawing on Regulation 2024/1689 (the AI Act).

The event is free to attend and forms part of the Software Design course taught by Prof. Paolo Burgio on the degree programme in Computer Science.

On Tuesday 31 March 2026, at 14:00, in Room 7 of the “Marco Biagi” Department of Economics, Via J. Berengario 51, as part of the ECODIGITAL project, co-funded by the European Union, a seminar will be held on “The Strategic Importance of Cybersecurity for Businesses”.

The speaker will be Dr. Nunzia Ciardi, Deputy Director General of the Italian National Cybersecurity Agency. She will explain why greater awareness of cyber risks and their impact on business is essential for all companies, including SMEs. European legislation has paid close attention to the resilience of information systems and provides important guidance for businesses in this area.

The event is open to the public and free of charge. Please register using the following form: https://forms.gle/KWvHiqTbopickmWU8.

On Tuesday 25 November 2025 in Florence, in collaboration with Federconsumatori Toscana, SPI-CGIL and Unicoop Firenze, as part of the outreach activities of the ECODIGITAL project, a seminar will be held on The Legal Protection of Consumers in the Digital Economy.

The speakers will be Prof. Simone Scagliarini, the project’s scientific coordinator, and Dr. Giacomo Menegus, who teach Digital Economy Law – Jean Monnet Module at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia.

On Monday 19 May 2025, at 16:00, at the Department of Surgery, Medicine and Dentistry – Reggio Emilia campus, and online via the Dolly Blended platform, as part of the ECODIGITAL project, co-funded by the European Union, a seminar will be held on “Personal Data Protection in Digital Education Contexts”.

The event forms part of the work to establish a Knowledge Hub, a research forum built on dialogue between scholars from different disciplines on the development of the digital economy.
The seminar will focus on personal data protection in the provision of online education, discussing the relevant legal requirements and the challenges faced by Digital Education specialists when designing educational programmes.

The discussion will bring together Prof. Simone Scagliarini, lecturer in Digital Economy Law in the “Marco Biagi” Department of Economics, and Prof. Alberto Levi, lecturer in Labour Law in Digital Contexts at the Department of Surgery, Medicine and Dentistry.

On Monday 19 May 2025, at 11:00, in Laboratory M0.2 of the Department of Physics, Informatics and Mathematics, Via Campi 213/b, as part of the ECODIGITAL project, co-funded by the European Union, a seminar will be held on “Software Licences: Technical and Legal Aspects”.
The event forms part of the work to establish a Knowledge Hub, a research forum built on dialogue between scholars from different disciplines on the development of the digital economy.
The seminar will focus on the protection of intellectual property in software, already addressed by Directive 2009/24/EC. It will examine both the legal framework in force and the technical issues that may arise. These issues present challenges for legal scholars while also offering opportunities to use tools beyond the law to pursue the same aim of protecting intellectual property.

The discussion will bring together Prof. Simone Scagliarini, lecturer in Digital Economy Law in the “Marco Biagi” Department of Economics, and Prof. Paolo Burgio, lecturer in Software Design at the Department of Physics, Informatics and Mathematics.

On Tuesday 15 April 2025, at 15:00, in the Aula Magna Est of the “Marco Biagi” Department of Economics, Viale Berengario 51, Prof. Giuliano Amato will deliver a lectio magistralis as part of the Digital Economy Law – Jean Monnet Module course, co-funded by the European Union, for the 2024/2025 academic year.

The lecture, entitled “Personal Data Protection and Competition Enforcement. The Facebook Case in Germany”, will address a central issue in the regulation of digital markets. In a data-driven economy, where personal data are an essential  resource for businesses, effective market competition necessarily requires compliance with privacy legislation. These two areas of European law therefore converge towards a common goal.

Prof. Giuliano Amato has held numerous prominent public offices, including Minister of the Treasury and Minister of the Interior, Prime Minister, President of the Italian Competition Authority and, more recently, judge and then President of the Constitutional Court.

The event is open to the public. Please register using the following link: https://forms.gle/6iSpXKxqZAk2SMdx5

On Thursday 3 April 2025, at 14:00, in Room 2 of the Department of Economics, Viale Berengario 51, lawyer Costanza Matteuzzi will deliver the second seminar in the Digital Economy Law – Jean Monnet Module course for the 2024/25 academic year.

The seminar, entitled “The Economic and Legal Relevance of Cybersecurity in the Data-Driven Economy”, will explore the importance of cybersecurity in an economy shaped by data, where businesses increasingly depend on data to make strategic decisions and optimise their operations. This dependence creates a need to invest in a culture of cybersecurity that can ensure the security, integrity and reliability of networks, particularly through appropriate regulatory responses such as those introduced by the European Union.

Costanza Matteuzzi, a member of the Florence Bar, specialises in cybercrime and data protection. She is Legal Manager of Women4Cyber, an association that promotes, encourages and supports women’s participation in cybersecurity across Europe.

The event is open to the public. Please register using the following link:

https://forms.gle/wAngRsmuu2gBi4P48

On Monday 3 March 2025, at 10:15, in Room I at the Economics teaching site in Viale Fontanelli, we will welcome Prof. Franco Pizzetti, who will deliver the first seminar in the Digital Economy Law – Jean Monnet Module course for the 2024/25 academic year.

The seminar, entitled “Lights and Shadows of European Union Regulation in the Digital Age”, will critically examine the European regulatory response to the challenges of digitalisation. This response is producing a body of legislation that could represent, in embryonic form, a true “European digital constitution”, giving legal substance to the concept of EU digital sovereignty.
Emeritus Professor of Constitutional Law at the University of Turin, Prof. Franco Pizzetti has held important public offices, including constitutional adviser to Prime Minister Giovanni Goria in 1987 and to Prime Minister Romano Prodi from 1996 to 1998, and President of the Italian Data Protection Authority from 2005 to 2012.

The event is open to the public. Please register using the following link:

https://forms.gle/6sCm9D5aXn19RZJb8