2023-07-14
Transfer of data to the United States: the European Union adopts new legislation to end the legal limbo
After months of negotiations, the European Commission has announced the adoption of new legislation on the transfer of data to the United States. This new regulation aims to put an end to the legal vagueness that hitherto surrounded the storage of data of European citizens on American soil.
In 2020, the previous device, the Privacy Shield, was invalidated by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) due to its inability to ensure compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) once the data stored in the United States.
The new legislative framework, entitled Data Privacy Framework, has been welcomed by the European Commission as a response to the concerns of the CJEU. Stricter measures have been put in place, including limiting US intelligence agencies’ access to European users’ data, which will only be allowed to the extent necessary and proportionate.
Alongside this legislation, US President Joe Biden announced the creation of a specialized court, the Data Protection Review Court (DRPC), responsible for settling disputes between European citizens and the United States in terms of data protection. This court will allow citizens to request the deletion of their data if a violation of European law is found.
However, critical voices are raised against this agreement. Max Schrems, head of the Noyb association (None of your business), considers that this agreement is based more on political interests than on concrete changes. He is already announcing an appeal to the CJEU, recalling that real changes to American legislation would have been necessary to guarantee compliance with European data protection standards.
It therefore remains to be seen whether this new legislation will suffice to put an end to the concerns and criticisms or whether it will raise new questions. In any case, the adoption of this new legislative framework constitutes a step forward in the protection of the data of European citizens in the context of transfers to the United States