Global Privacy & Security Compliance Law Blog

Tag Archives: Legislation & Regulation

Takeaways From Hong Kong PCPD’s 2021-22 Annual Report

The Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data of Hong Kong summarised enforcement trends and plans to further amend the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance. By Kieran Donovan and Jacqueline Van On 9 November 2022, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data of Hong Kong (Commissioner) published its annual report titled “A New … Continue Reading

Saudi Arabia Issues Amended Data Protection Law for Consultation

The amendment proposes business-friendly changes regarding data localization and legitimate interests. By Brian Meenagh and Lucy Tucker On November 20, 2022, the Saudi Data and AI Authority (SDAIA) published an amended version of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s (KSA or the Kingdom) Personal Data Protection Law (PDPL) for consultation (the Amended Draft). The Amended Draft … Continue Reading

EDPB Publishes Regulatory Guidance on Territorial Scope of GDPR

The Guidance provides helpful clarifications for service providers and their customers on both sides of the Atlantic. By Robert Blamires, Fiona M. Maclean, and Danielle van der Merwe Long-awaited guidance on the territorial scope of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has been published by the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) for public consultation (Guidance). … Continue Reading

Russia Introduces New Definition and Obligations for Audiovisual Service Owners

By Gail Crawford and Ksenia Koroleva The Federal Law No. 87-FZ of May 1, 2017, on Amendments to the Federal Law on Information, Information Technologies, and Information Protection (the Law) came into force on July 1, 2017. The Law introduces the definition of an audiovisual service owner and regulates their activities, including imposing ownership restrictions. The Notion of … Continue Reading

Trump Administration Issues New Executive Order Focused on Strengthening Federal Cybersecurity

By Steven Croley*, Jennifer Archie and Serrin Turner The Trump Administration has issued a much anticipated Executive Order (EO),“Strengthening the Cybersecurity of Federal Networks and Critical Infrastructure,” directing federal executive agency heads to undertake various cyber-related reviews and to report findings back to the White House within prescribed timetables. Unlike some of the Trump Administration’s … Continue Reading

Germany Implements GDPR

By Ulrich Wuermeling Well ahead of the implementation deadline for the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the German Parliament (Bundestag) passed a new Federal Data Protection Act (Bundesdatenschutzgesetz) on April 27, 2017. The Federal Council (Bundesrat) could confirm the Act before the summer, but may require further amendments. If the Parliament and the Council fail to … Continue Reading

European Commission Proposes ePrivacy Regulation

By Ulrich Wuermeling On January 10, 2017, the European Commission proposed a new ePrivacy Regulation (Proposal). Compared to the internal draft that was leaked in December, the official Proposal has been substantially modified. However, the general approach taken by the European Commission has not changed. The Proposal includes provisions with a broad scope of application covering … Continue Reading

GDPR Guidance: DPOs, Data Portability & the One-Stop-Shop

By Fiona Maclean & Calum Docherty The Article 29 Working Party (WP29) – the group that represents the data protection authorities of all EU Member States – has published guidance and FAQs on a number of issues under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Data Protection Officers (DPOs) (Guidance & FAQs) DPOs are the cornerstone … Continue Reading

“Yarovaya” Law – New Data Retention Obligations for Telecom Providers and Arrangers in Russia

By Ksenia Koroleva On July 6, 2016, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed Federal Law No 374-FZ. This law is also known as the “Yarovaya” law (named after a Russian senator who was the main driving force for the law to come into existence). The Yarovaya law introduces amendments to certain Russian federal laws. The majority … Continue Reading

“Hacking” Warrants: A Question of Procedure or Substance?

By Serrin Turner Typically, the process for amending the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure is a sleepy affair. Proposed amendments wend their way through a series of judicial committees and, if approved by the Supreme Court, take effect automatically by the end of the year. Theoretically, Congress may choose to intervene and block the change – … Continue Reading

The Countdown to the General Data Protection in Europe Has Begun

By Gail Crawford and Lore Leitner Today, after more than four years of debate, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR, or the Regulation) enters into force. The GDPR will introduce a rigorous, far-reaching privacy framework for businesses that operate, target customers or monitor individuals in the EU. The Regulation sets out a suite of new … Continue Reading

Recent Amendments to the Russian Personal Data Protection Legislation: The Right to be Forgotten

By Mikhail Turetsky, Ksenia Koroleva and Lore Leitner On July 13, 2015, the Russian President signed Federal Law No. 264-FZ (the Law), which introduced a range of amendments into Russian legislation (the Amendments). In particular, the principle of the “right to be forgotten”, a concept not previously recognized under Russian law came into effect on … Continue Reading

Privacy Shield is on its Way

By Ulrich Wuermeling, Jennifer Archie & Lore Leitner On March 17, 2016, the Civil Liberties Committee convened to discuss whether the Privacy Shield framework that will replace Safe Harbor provides adequate protection to the data of EU citizens. A number of experts were questioned including: the US lead negotiator, the EU Data Protection Supervisor, members of the … Continue Reading

Political Agreement on European Data Protection Regulation

By Ulrich Wuermeling A political compromise has been reached on the new European Data Protection Regulation. On December 15, 2015, the negotiators in the so-called “informal trilogue” between the Council, the Parliament and the European Commission closed the final issues. Meanwhile, the Luxembourg Presidency informed the LIBE-Committee of the Parliament as well as the Permanent Representatives Committee … Continue Reading

Final Negotiations on European Data Protection Regulation

By Ulrich Wuermeling Almost four years after the European Commission introduced their draft for a new European Data Protection Regulation, negotiators of the European Parliament and Council are close to agreeing on a compromise text, set for December 15, 2015. If the final negotiations in the so-called “informal trilogue” are successful, the legislative process can be formally … Continue Reading

European Commission Defends Model Contracts

By Ulrich Wuermeling On November 6, the European Commission issued a comprehensive Communication on the consequences of the Schrems Judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ). In the Communication, the Commission puts national data protection authorities in their place by stating that Model Contracts are a valid alternative measure to provide … Continue Reading

DIFC in Dubai Says Transfer to US Cannot Rely on Safe Harbor

By Brian Meenagh On October 26, 2015, Raja Al Mazrouei, the Commissioner for Data Protection for the Dubai International Financial Centre (the DIFC), issued guidance on the adequacy of US Safe Harbor for the purpose of exporting personal data from the DIFC. The guidance is significant for organisations that transfer personal data from the DIFC to the … Continue Reading

European Commission Pushes New Agreement with the US

By Ulrich Wuermeling On October 26, the European Commissioner Věra Jourová addressed the Parliament Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs to discuss the consequences of the Schrems Judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ). Jourová commented on the status of the negotiations with the US to find a new solution … Continue Reading

German Data Protection Authorities: Hope for Model Contracts?

By Ulrich Wuermeling An early Position Paper of the German data protection authority of Schleswig-Holstein on the Schrems Judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ) gave little hope for practical alternatives to Safe Harbor. On October 26, all German data protection authorities published a more reasoned joint Statement that follows the … Continue Reading

European Data Protection Authorities Grant Grace Period Until End of January 2016

By Gail Crawford, Ulrich Wuermeling and Jennifer Archie The so called Article 29 Working Party met on October 15, 2015 to discuss the consequences of the Schrems Judgment of the European Court of Justice (ECJ). On October 16, 2015, the Working Party published a Statement summarizing their initial conclusions. The Working Party includes representatives of … Continue Reading

European Court of Justice: Safe Harbor Decision Is Invalid!

By Jennifer Archie, Gail Crawford and Ulrich Wuermeling On October 6, the European Court of Justice ruled that Decision 2000/520 of the European Commission, which stated that Safe Harbor-certified US companies provide adequate protection for personal data transferred to them from the EU (the Safe Harbor Adequacy Decision), is invalid (Case C-362/14 – Maximillian Schrems … Continue Reading
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