State Of The Art !FREE!
The state of the art (sometimes cutting edge or leading edge) refers to the highest level of general development, as of a device, technique, or scientific field achieved at a particular time. However, in some contexts it can also refer to a level of development reached at any particular time as a result of the common methodologies employed at the time.
state of the art
In advertising, the phrase is often used to convey that a product is made with the best or latest available technology, but it has been noted that "the term 'state of the art' requires little proof on the part of advertisers", as it is considered mere puffery.[1] The use of the term in patent law "does not connote even superiority, let alone the superlative quality the ad writers would have us ascribe to the term".[2]
Over time, use of the term increased in all fields where this kind of art has a significant role.[6] In this relation it has been quoted by the author that "although eighteenth-century writers did not use the term, there was indeed in existence a collection of scientific and engineering knowledge and expertise that can be identified as the state of the art for that time".[6]
In the context of European and Australian patent law, the term "state of the art" is a concept used in the process of assessing and asserting novelty and inventive step,[9] and is a synonym of the expression "prior art".[10] In the European Patent Convention (EPC), "[t]he state of the art shall be held to comprise everything made available to the public by means of a written or oral description, by use, or in any other way, before the date of filing of the European patent application" according to Article 54(2) EPC. Due account should be taken of Article 54(3) EPC as well, but merely for the examination of novelty.
The state of the art is important in the law of tort liability, specifically in the areas of negligence and product liability. With respect to negligence, "an engineer may defend against a claim of negligence by contending that he met the standards of his profession and the state of the art".[12] With respect to product liability, manufacturers generally have strict liability for any injury caused by defects in their products. However, in some jurisdictions a manufacturer may raise as a legal defense the assertion that their product represents the "state of the art", and that the manufacturer therefore could not have made the product any safer in light of the knowledge available at the time.[13] For example, "[u]nder German law, the producer can also raise the state-of-the-art defense: general tort law does not hold him liable if he could not know or discover the defect for lack of fault, and the Product Liability Statute expressly provides for this defense".[14] This defense is available throughout the European Community under the Product Liability Directive, art. 7(e). Pursuant to this article:
The state-of-the-art defense allows a defendant to be absolved of liability if he can prove that the state of technical and scientific knowledge, at the time when he put the product into circulation, was not such as to enable the existence of the defect to be discovered. The Directive allows Member States to eliminate the state-of-the-art defense, but only Luxembourg, which has little manufacturing industry, has done so.[15]
In the United States, the state of an industry is "merely evidence of due care rather than a controlling factor",[16] but a number of states have state-of-the-art statutes that "make a manufacturer's compliance with technological feasibility an absolute defense to a products liability suit".[16] Because the state of the art is constantly advancing, the ability of manufacturers to claim that their products are "state-of-the-art" tracks their potential liability when these products are defective. As an industry magazine explained in 1984:
Remote control rear view mirrors, disc brakes, automatic slack adjusters for drum brakes and sealed lighting systems are just a few examples of products that have advanced the state of the art. When one of these gains a degree of industry acceptance, it begins to bridge a legal gap between what is state of the art from a design standpoint, and what is state of the art from a usage standpoint. This could place a carrier in a vulnerable position in the not too distant future.[17]
In many European countries, national legislators are pursuing the objective of reducing the deficiencies in IT security. In addition, the General Data Protection Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (GDPR) with its high requirements for technical and organisational measures has been in force since 25 May 2018. Both legal sources are demanding that IT security be brought up to the level of "state of the art", but do not say what should be understood by this in detail. In Germany, TeleTrusT - IT Security Association Germany has written guidelines that are published in English in cooperation with the European Union Agency for Network and Information Security (ENISA).Daily reports on security incidents in companies and authorities show that there is an urgent need for action to improve IT security. Article 32 of the GDPR regulates "security of processing" to ensure that, taking into account the state of the art, the costs of implementation and the nature, scope, context and purposes of processing as well as the risk of varying likelihood and severity for the rights and freedoms of natural persons, appropriate technical and organisational measures are implemented. This provision is aimed at ensuring a level of protection appropriate to the risk.The document published on the "state of the art" in IT security provides concrete advice and recommendations for action. These guidelines are intended to provide companies, providers (manufacturers, service providers) alike with assistance in determining the "state of the art" within the meaning of the IT security legislation. The document can serve as a reference for contractual agreements, procurement procedures or the classification of security measures implemented. They are not a replacement for technical, organisational or legal advice or assessment in individual cases.The document will support companies in all EU countries in identifying the required level of security in the field of IT security.Dr. Udo Helmbrecht, ENISA Executive Director: "ENISA continues its work in supporting the EU Member States by contributing to this handbook. The articles are designed to provide concrete information and recommendations on how to improve IT security. This booklet should be a useful guide to IT practitioners who have the responsibility for complying with legislation."TeleTrusT Chairman Prof. Dr. Norbert Pohlmann: "By determining the state of the art, we will be able to adequately increase the level of IT security, strengthen our robustness against cyber attacks and thus significantly reduce the risk of ongoing digitalisation."TeleTrusT Board Member Karsten U. Bartels: "The consideration of the state of the art is a technical, organisational and legal task for companies and authorities. The guidelines help very specifically at these three levels - both in the operative implementation and in the documentation."English version: -of-the-art-in-it-security/ German version: -der-technik/ ENISA - European Union Agency for Network and Information SecurityThe European Union Agency for Network and Information Security (ENISA) is a centre of expertise for cyber security in Europe. The Agency is located in Greece with its seat in Athens and a branch office in Heraklion, Crete. ENISA is actively contributing to a high level of network and information security (NIS) within the Union, since it was set up in 2004, to the development of a culture of NIS in society and in order to raise awareness of NIS, thus contributing to proper functioning of the internal market. The Agency works closely together with Members States and private sector to deliver advice and solutions. This includes, the pan-European Cyber Security Exercises, the development of National Cyber Security Strategies, CSIRTs cooperation and capacity building, but also studies on secure Cloud adoption, addressing data protection issues, privacy enhancing technologies and privacy on emerging technologies, eIDs and trust services, and identifying the cyber threat landscape, and others. ENISA also supports the development and implementation of the European Union's policy and law on matters relating to NIS. TeleTrusT - IT Security Association GermanyThe IT Security Association Germany (TeleTrusT) is a widespread competence network for IT security comprising members from industry, administration, consultancy and research as well as national and international partner organisations with similar objectives. With a broad range of members and partner organisations, TeleTrusT embodies the largest competence network for IT security in Germany and Europe. TeleTrusT provides interdisciplinary fora for IT security experts and facilitates information exchange between vendors, users, researchers and authorities. TeleTrusT comments on technical, political and legal issues related to IT security and is organiser of events and conferences. TeleTrusT is a non-profit association, whose objective is to promote information security professionalism, raising awareness and best practices in all domains of information security. TeleTrusT is carrier of the "European Bridge CA" (EBCA; PKI network of trust), the IT expert certification schemes "TeleTrusT Information Security Professional" (T.I.S.P.) and "TeleTrusT Professional for Secure Software Engineering" (T.P.S.S.E.) and provides the trust seal "IT Security made in Germany". TeleTrusT is a member of the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI). The association is headquartered in Berlin, Germany. 041b061a72