Compliance Lessons From Star Trek

The UK Information Commissioner's Office has finalized its guidance on storage and access technologies, expanding compliance requirements beyond traditional cookies to include tracking pixels, device fingerprinting, and web storage. Organizations must now navigate stricter consent standards and three new narrow exceptions introduced by the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025, while facing significantly increased enforcement penalties of up to £17.5 million or 4% of annual worldwide turnover.

Explore comprehensive legal insights and expert commentary across diverse practice areas and industries. Access thought leadership through written articles and podcast discussions that address current legal developments and emerging trends.

From 2 August 2026, the EU AI Act requires businesses to disclose when people are interacting with AI systems, mark synthetic content for detection, label deepfakes, and inform individuals...

The Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 (the DUAA) officially became law in June 2025, with a phased enforcement model under which different provisions take effect at different times.

The European Commission has announced that EU AI Act transparency rules take effect August 2, 2026, requiring chatbots to identify themselves, deepfakes to be labeled, and AI-generated content to be marked. Organizations must assess whether their AI systems trigger disclosure, labeling, or content-marking requirements, with limited exceptions and penalties reaching €15 million or 3% of global turnover for noncompliance.

On 30 September 2026, the Information Commissioner's Office formally becomes the Information Commission. It is the most significant structural change to the UK's data protection regulator in its history, and yet, many organisations are wondering what practical implications this change will have. Here's what you need to know.

The Information Commissioner's Office has launched a consultation on draft guidance addressing anonymisation and pseudonymisation for research, archiving and statistical purposes. This guidance provides critical insight into how organisations should apply data minimisation principles in modern research practices, including AI development, trusted research environments, and synthetic data generation.

The UK's Information Commissioner's Office has opened a public consultation on draft guidance addressing anonymisation and pseudonymisation techniques for processing personal data in research, archiving, and statistical contexts. The guidance explores critical distinctions between anonymous and pseudonymous data, outlines required safeguards under UK GDPR, and examines emerging technologies including synthetic data and privacy-enhancing tools.

The European Commission has launched a privacy-preserving age-verification app designed to help platforms comply with the Digital Services Act, but Member States are simultaneously implementing divergent national age...

An IP address is a unique identifier assigned to a device. Google has always collected and used IP addresses. The change from 3 August 2026, is in relation to new purposes for which they may be used. Google has now started using users’ IP addresses for ad measurement and personalisation across the EEA, UK and Switzerland.

Partner John Binns and Principal Associate Alex Gorst examine significant developments in UK and international sanctions law, including new sectoral measures against Iran, proposed Israeli settlement sanctions, OFSI's £4.7 million Citibank penalty, and the US Treasury's intensified Operation Economic Outcast targeting Iranian networks.

The UK Government has codified the annual "Frozen Assets Review" under its sanctions regimes, through the Sanctions (EU Exit) (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No 2) Regulations 2024 ("Amending Regulations").

BCL Solicitors' partners have earned recognition as leading lawyers in criminal investigations, while the firm's experts analyze high-profile cases and systemic reforms shaping the UK criminal justice system.

Welcome to BCL’s latest sanctions and export controls round-up, highlighting the key developments in UK and international sanctions

BCL's latest sanctions round-up provides a comprehensive overview of recent UK and international developments in sanctions law, enforcement actions, and compliance requirements. This fortnightly summary examines new designations, licensing updates, and emerging trends that businesses and legal professionals need to monitor.

The UK government has significantly expanded its sanctions framework targeting Russia, introducing measures against individuals and entities involved in military supply chains, energy sectors, cryptocurrency networks, and alleged human rights violations. These developments reflect an evolving enforcement landscape with new powers, increased scrutiny of sanctions evasion, and landmark legal clarifications affecting businesses operating in sanctioned jurisdictions.

This comprehensive round-up examines the latest developments in UK, EU, and US sanctions and export controls, covering new designations, enforcement actions, regulatory updates, and compliance guidance across multiple sanctions regimes including Russia, Iran, and global human rights measures.

It is a pernicious feature of sanctions laws that they affect far more people than they target.

The UK government has introduced significant changes to its sanctions framework, including new powers to target criminal networks, expanded enforcement capabilities...

BCL Solicitors' Senior Associate Ewelina James provides essential guidance on freezing orders, explaining their legal application, the circumstances under which courts grant them, and the critical steps both applicants and respondents must take when facing these powerful civil remedies.