Who is liable for damage caused by smart technologies, for example, for data loss due to hacker attacks, unwanted invasions of privacy or material damage? How can we counteract the tendency for devices to be rendered inoperable after a certain time so that consumers buy something new? How should personalizations of the devices be reacted to, how should the danger of manipulation be countered? The researchers want to answer these and other questions.
The project is aimed at comparing the laws of Germany and the United Kingdom. "In this way, we want to identify opportunities to learn from each other's legal systems and initiate a joint learning process," says Prof. Dr. Louisa Specht-Riemenschneider from the University of Bonn. Together with Prof. Dr. Christoph Busch from the University of Osnabrück, she is investigating the German legal system, while her British colleagues Prof. Dr. Guido Noto La Diega from the University of Stirling and Prof. Dr. Christian Twigg-Flesner from the University of Warwick are examining the British situation.
The funding line is a cooperation between the German Research Foundation and the British Arts and Humanities Research Council. In the current third round, 19 world-leading research collaborations have been selected. Among them, the project "From Smart Technologies to Smart Consumer Laws" is the only legal science project to be funded.
The project is thematically linked to the Transdisciplinary Research Area "Individuals & Societies" as well as the ECONtribute Cluster of Excellence at the University of Bonn. Specht-Riemenschneider is a member of both networks.