On May 29, 2017, a high-level EU Commission official and Politico reported that the primary objective of the first annual joint review of the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield (“Privacy Shield”) is not to obtain more concessions from the U.S. regarding Europeans’ privacy safeguards, but rather to monitor the current U.S. administration’s work and steer U.S. privacy debates to prevent privacy safeguards from deteriorating. On March 31, 2017, the EU Commissioner for Justice, Věra Jourová, announced that the joint review will take place in September 2017.
The review will focus on two important points:
Most recently, the European Parliament passed a Resolution on the adequacy of the protection afforded by the Privacy Shield, pointing out several weaknesses to be fixed in the upcoming review of the framework, including the lack of specific rules on automated decisions, the lack of a general right to object, the need for stricter guarantees on the independence and powers of the Ombudsperson mechanism, and the lack of concrete assurances with respect to bulk collection of data.
On the basis of the annual review, the EU Commission will issue a public report to the European Parliament and the Council.
Blog courtesy of Hunton & Williams LLP, U.S.-based law firm with a Global Privacy and Cybersecurity practice that's known throughout the world for its deep experience, breadth of knowledge and outstanding client service. Read the company's privacy blog here.
