Data Transfer Pact Between U.S. and Europe Is Ruled Invalid
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/07/technology/european-union-us-data-collection.html?partner=rss&emc=rss
The ruling, by the European Court of Justice, could make
it more difficult for global technology giants -- including the
likes of Amazon and Apple, Google and Facebook -- to collect and
mine online information from their millions of users in the
28-member European Union. The court declared the data-transfer
agreement, which is known as Safe Harbor, immediately invalid.
Although most big multinational companies and their lawyers have
hammered out side agreements with the European Union that should
allow them to continue moving data across borders for now, the
court's ruling could hold significant implications down the
road.
- - -
Of course, we know what's really going on here. Note that there haven't
been calls in the U.S. to prohibit the transfer of U.S. users' data to
countries outside the U.S. As firms like Google, Apple, and Facebook
introduce ever more robust encryption systems, it becomes more difficult
than ever for the law enforcement and intelligence agencies outside the
U.S. to get easy access to *their own* users' data, especially when (for
example) Google won't just hand it over with a nod and wink, but
requires court orders and associated legal processes. NSA never had
access to Google servers and Europe knows it. What you're seeing is a
triple-headed smoke sceen of Europe and other countries outside the U.S.
attempting to preserve their own avenues for spying on users' data,
impose global censorship through mechanisms like "Right To Be
Forgotten" -- and to prop up local industries that can no longer compete.
You're not fooling us.
--Lauren--
Lauren Weinstein ([email protected]): http://www.vortex.com/lauren
Founder:
- Network Neutrality Squad: http://www.nnsquad.org
- PRIVACY Forum: http://www.vortex.com/privacy-info
Co-Founder: People For Internet Responsibility: http://www.pfir.org/pfir-info
Member: ACM Committee on Computers and Public Policy
Lauren's Blog: http://lauren.vortex.com
Google+: http://google.com/+LaurenWeinstein
Twitter: http://twitter.com/laurenweinstein
Tel: +1 (818) 225-2800 / Skype: vortex.com
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