Written by a renowned expert on data protection law, this work examines the history, policies, and future of transborder data flow regulation, and is the only text to provide a detailed legal analysis of its global implications.
Over 70 countries and various international organizations have adopted data protection and privacy laws that regulate the cross-border transfer of personal data outside their borders. In an era of globalization and the Internet, these restrictions have immense implications for citizens, companies, and governments. This work, written by a renowned expert on data protection law, examines the history, policies, and future of transborder data flow regulation. Kuner traces the history of regulation in different regions, beginning with the earliest European laws in the 1970s, through to leading regi.
This book focuses on the international politics of transborder data flows. It examines the rise of data services and the impact of these services on international economic transactions. The book looks at trade and foreign direct investment in services and reviews the policy position of the U.S.
The historic European Union Directive on Data Protection will take effect in October 1998. A key provision will prohibit transfer of personal information from Europe to other countries if they lack “adequate” protection of privacy. If enforced as written, the Directive could create enormous obstacles to commerce between Europe and other countries, such as the United States, that do not have comprehensive privacy statutes. In this book, Peter Swire and Robert Litan provide the first detailed analysis of the sector-by-sector effects of the Directive. They examine such topics as the text of the Directive, the tension between privacy laws and modern information technologies, issues affecting a wide range of businesses and other organizations, effects on the financial services sector, and effects on other prominent sectors with large transborder data flows. In light of the many and significant effects of the Directive as written, the book concludes with detailed policy recommendations on how to avoid a coming trade war with Europe. The book will be of interest to the wide range of individuals and organizations affected by the important new European privacy laws. More generally, the privacy clash discussed in the book will prove a major precedent for how electronic commerce and world data flows will be governed in the Internet Age.