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EU agrees to data deal with Japan as US pact hangs in the balance
The EU and Japan have reached an agreement that will allow businesses in both regions to freely share and transfer data without additional safeguards or authorizations. The deal, which covers information such as credit card details and browsing habits, will help to fortify links between the EU and Japan, which recently signed the world's largest free-trade agreement.
US-Europe privacy agreement passes its yearly review
If you haven't ever heard of Privacy Shield, it's an agreement between the US and the EU. It allows companies that store personal data of people who reside in the EU (such as Facebook) on servers in the US, all while adhering to European standards for privacy protection. It replaced Safe Harbor last year, and the EU has been keeping an eye on it since mid-2016. Now, the first review of Privacy Shield has taken place. Despite behind-the-scenes dissatisfaction, both EU and US officials have stated their support for the framework in a joint statement. They also hope to further improve the agreement based on what the review found.
EU will watch Privacy Shield for a year before challenging
Earlier this month, the European Commission adopted Privacy Shield, an EU-US data privacy agreement. It allows companies like Facebook and Twitter to move EU data to US servers, all the while assuring Europeans their data is still as protected as it was back home. Critics have complained the new arrangement has many of the same flaws as the "Safe Harbour" framework it replaces, and EU data protection authorities had yet to comment on the final deal.
France objects to Windows 10 user tracking
France's privacy regulator has stared into Windows 10 and feels that the software's doing a bit too much staring back. CNIL has issued a statement saying that the operating system collects too much data about its users. For instance, it explains that Microsoft tracks usage statistics to identify problems, including apps downloaded and time spent in each one. Which, sounds quite reasonable, since most of our days are spent working inside Chrome, Firefox or Edge. But since this information isn't necessary for the day-to-day operation of Windows 10, it's considered to be an infringement on people's privacy.
The EU-US Privacy Shield is up, but its future is in doubt
After much argument and discussion, the European Commission (EC) today adopted the Privacy Shield, an EU-US agreement that's supposed to protect the rights of Europeans whose personal data is transferred to the US. It's necessary because laws in the US aren't on par with Europe when it comes to data protection. With the agreement in place, companies like Facebook and Twitter can now freely move information between regions while ensuring that Europeans' rights are upheld.
US and Europe reveal how they'll protect your personal data
The US and EU have published a big pile of documents that spill the beans on the pair's replacement for Safe Harbor. The new provision is known as the EU-US Privacy Shield and is designed to limit how much personal data the NSA (amongst others) can access. The files also call for the creation of an independent regulator that'll handle complaints from users which will be funded by contributions from internet companies. The most interesting factoid we've spotted so far is that firms like Facebook can choose if it wants to be subject to American or European data protection law -- although it'll default to the former.
