On Thursday, September 27, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced settlements with four companies, IDmission, LLC, mResource LLC (doing business as Loop Works, LLC), SmartStart Employment Screening, Inc., and VenPath, Inc., following allegations that the companies falsely claimed to be certified under the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield. Specifically, the FTC alleged that IDmission, LLC misrepresented participation … Continue Reading
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has published new guidance on international data transfers (the guidance) under the General Data Protection Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2016/679) (GDPR). Ex-EU personal data transfers The GDPR restricts the transfer of personal data to non-EU countries or international organisations. The ICO has clarified that a transfer is restricted if: The GDPR … Continue Reading
On 10 July 2018, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) announced its intent to fine Facebook £500,000 for two breaches of the Data Protection Act 1998, the maximum permitted under the pre-GDPR regime. If the penalty is enforced, it will be the biggest issued by the ICO in its history. For some perspective, had the breach … Continue Reading
On 22 June 2018, the European Commission published a factsheet that provides a visual summary of the actions taken to date to implement its Digital Single Market strategy. The Digital Single Market strategy refers to the European Commission’s mission to ensure access to online activities for individuals and businesses under conditions of fair competition, consumer … Continue Reading
This month, the Privacy Shield Program posted answers to Frequently Asked Questions. The Privacy Shield provides a mechanism to comply with data protection requirements when transferring personal data from the European Union to the United States in support of transatlantic commerce. The general guidance addresses topics such as the continued status of the Privacy Shield … Continue Reading
The Summer 2018 Edition of the quarterly IT & Data Protection Newsletter by Reed Smith Germany has just been released. We provide updates on Facebook fan pages, cookie consent, influencer marketing, liability of platform providers, framing and more. The newsletter also includes multiple recommended reads on the GDPR. We hope you enjoy reading it.… Continue Reading
On 5 July 2018, the European Parliament demanded in a resolution that the European Commission suspends its EU-U.S. Privacy Shield unless the U.S. administration introduces adequate data protection safeguards by 1 September 2018. The Privacy Shield agreement is aimed at facilitating data transfers of EU personal data to the United States. The non-binding resolution was … Continue Reading
On 25 May 2018 the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) formally replaced the Article 29 Working Party as the European advisory committee on data protection issues. In addition to taking over Article 29 Working Party’s responsibilities in issuing guidelines, recommendations and statements of best practice, the EDPB, which operates as an independent body of the … Continue Reading
Article 23 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) allows EU Member States to restrict the scope of data subjects’ GDPR rights and organisations’ GDPR obligations. The Irish data protection authority, the Data Protection Commission (DPC), released guidelines (Guidelines) on GDPR Article 23 on 19 June 2018. The Irish Data Protection Act 2018 (the Act) … Continue Reading
On 7 June 2018, the UK government published a technical note detailing options for future UK-EU cooperation on data protection, post-Brexit. The technical note is part of a series of papers produced by the UK Brexit negotiation team for discussion with the EU, in order to assist with the development of future EU-UK relations. The … Continue Reading
Recently, the European Commission endorsed draft horizontal provisions for cross-border data flows and personal data protection in trade agreements – as personal data is a fundamental right, it is not something which can be the subject of negotiation in EU trade deals. Relatedly, the Article 29 Working Party (A29WP) consultation on the guidelines under Article … Continue Reading
On 6 February 2018, the Article 29 Working Party (WP29) adopted revised guidelines on binding corporate rules (BCRs). These were issued following a period of public consultation that concluded on 17 January 2018. Technology Law Dispatch previously covered the issuing of the draft guidelines last December, in a blog setting out the key elements of … Continue Reading
Following a recent ruling by the High Court against WM Morrisons Supermarket PLC (“Morrisons”), employers may now find themselves vicariously liable for data breaches perpetrated by their employees (https://www.judiciary.gov.uk/judgments/various-claimants-v-wm-morrisons-supermarket-plc/). Background In 2014, it was discovered that a file containing the pay roll data of 99,998 Morrisons’ employees had been uploaded to a file sharing website. … Continue Reading
Background On 22 November 2017, the Court of Justice of the European Union (“CJEU”) gave judgment in a case taken by the not-for-profit company, Digital Rights Ireland Limited (“DRIL”). DRIL sought an annulment of the European Commission’s Privacy Shield decision. This decision states that the US ensures an adequate level of protection for personal data … Continue Reading
Background On 3 October 2017, the Irish High Court held that it is up to the European Court of Justice (“ECJ”) to determine whether Standard Contractual Clauses (“SCCs”) are a valid method of transferring personal data outside of the EU in compliance with privacy law. SCCs are widely used by businesses that transfer data from … Continue Reading
The governments of Switzerland and the United States finalised the Swiss-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework on 11 January. The Framework is similar in many respects to the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield, and replaces the U.S.-Swiss Safe Harbor Framework with immediate effect. Background… Continue Reading
According to a press release of the Bavarian Data Protection Authority dated 3 November 2016 (“Press Release”), 10 German Data Protection Authorities (“DPAs”) have commenced a coordinated written audit and assessment of international data transfers, i.e., transfers to non-EU countries. Five hundred German companies will be asked to complete a comprehensive questionnaire which covers details of the … Continue Reading
The Interim Deputy Commissioner at the Information Commissioner’s Office (“ICO”), Steve Wood, has published a blog reminding organisations of their obligations when transferring personal data to the United States, pursuant to the case brought by Max Schrems in 2015, which led to the Safe Harbor framework being declared immediately invalid. Wood reminds organisations that continued … Continue Reading
On 26 July, the Article 29 Data Protection Working Party (WP29) released a statement outlining its opinion on the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield, which was adopted by the European Commission earlier this month. After praising the improvements implemented by the Commission and U.S. authorities since its last critical opinion, the WP29 outlined some remaining concerns, including … Continue Reading
At the beginning of July, Baroness Neville-Rolfe, Minister of State at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, gave a speech at the annual Privacy Laws & Business conference, outlining the government’s stance on the implications of Brexit for a range of data issues including the GDPR, cybersecurity, international data transfers and the Internet of … Continue Reading
In a sign of the continuing significance of the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Spokeo v. Robins, 136 S. Ct. 1540 (May 24, 2016), another federal court has cited that ruling in dismissing claims for lack of Article III standing. In Gubula v. Time Warner Cable, Inc., No. 15-cv-1078 (E.D. Wis. June 17, 2016), … Continue Reading
Following the CJEU’s judgment of October 2015 invalidating the European Commission’s Safe Harbor Decision, the Data Protection Authority Hamburg (“DPA Hamburg“) started investigations against 35 internationally operating companies in Hamburg. According to a press release of DPA Hamburg of 6 June 2016, these investigations revealed that the majority of the companies under investigation had used … Continue Reading
In a written statement to Parliament, Baroness Neville-Rolfe confirmed the UK Government’s view that the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (“TFEU”) means that Article 48 of the GDPR does not apply to the UK. Article 48 of the GDPR states that any judgment or tribunal decision – or decision of an administrative … Continue Reading
The EU-U.S. data protection Umbrella Agreement consists of a framework of principles and safeguards for trans-Atlantic transfers of personal data (such as criminal records, names and addresses) in relation to the prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of criminal offences, including terrorism. The agreement seeks to satisfy two core objectives: first, to ensure a high level … Continue Reading
