PRAVO I INTERNET FOUNDATION

Their core work

The Law and Internet Foundation is a Bulgarian research organization specializing in the legal, regulatory, and ethical dimensions of digital technologies — from cybersecurity and digital forensics to data protection and ICT-enabled public services. They bring legal expertise into technical consortia, ensuring that tools for policing, forensic investigation, cybersecurity, and smart manufacturing comply with European legal frameworks. Their work bridges the gap between technology developers and the regulatory environment, making them a valuable partner for projects that must navigate GDPR, e-evidence rules, and cross-border legal interoperability.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In their early H2020 period (2015–2018), the foundation focused on security and policing technologies — community policing (CITYCoP), disaster risk management (CARISMAND), and counter-terrorism intelligence tools (COPKIT) — providing legal and ethical oversight for surveillance and law enforcement tools. From 2019 onward, their work shifted toward cybersecurity frameworks (GUARD), digital forensics with courtroom admissibility (FORMOBILE), and data governance in smart manufacturing (i4Q). The trajectory shows a clear move from policy-oriented security research toward more technical, applied domains like digital forensics, blockchain-based data integrity, and industrial data quality.

They are moving from advisory roles in security policy toward hands-on legal-technical work in digital forensics, cybersecurity trust frameworks, and industrial data compliance — positioning themselves as the legal backbone for data-intensive EU projects.

How they like to work

The foundation operates exclusively as a consortium participant, never as coordinator, which is typical for a specialized legal-regulatory partner that complements technical leads. With 114 unique partners across 26 countries in just 7 projects, they join large, diverse consortia (averaging 16+ partners per project) rather than small focused teams. This broad network suggests they are a trusted, easy-to-integrate partner that technical coordinators bring in when legal, ethical, or regulatory expertise is needed.

With 114 unique consortium partners across 26 countries from just 7 projects, the foundation has an unusually wide European network for its size. Their partnerships span law enforcement agencies, universities, technology SMEs, and large research institutes across Western, Central, and Eastern Europe.

What sets them apart

As a legal-tech research foundation based in Bulgaria, they occupy a rare niche: deep expertise in internet law, digital rights, and regulatory compliance packaged in an SME-sized organization that can join EU consortia flexibly. Unlike law firms or large universities, they combine academic rigor with practical legal analysis tailored to EU project needs — particularly where technology meets regulation (e-evidence, GDPR, cybersecurity certification). For consortium builders, they solve the common problem of finding a credible legal-ethical partner from an EU-13 country, which also helps geographic balance in proposals.

Highlights from their portfolio

• FORMOBILE
  Their largest project by funding (EUR 307,750), addressing the complete forensic chain from mobile phone evidence to courtroom admissibility — directly at the intersection of law and technology.
• GUARD
  Tackled cybersecurity for digital service chains with focus on trust and cross-domain security, reflecting their shift toward applied cybersecurity governance.
• COPKIT
  Counter-terrorism early-warning system combining deep learning, OSINT, and intelligence-led policing — showcasing their ability to contribute legal oversight to sensitive security tools.