US, EU sign data transfer deal to ease privacy concerns
BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union and United States made a breakthrough in their yearslong battle over the privacy of data that flows across the Atlantic with a preliminary agreement Friday that paves the way for Europeans' personal information to be stored in the U.S.
President Joe Biden and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced the deal during Biden's stop in Brussels while on a European tour amid Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Business groups hailed the announcement, saying it will provide relief to thousands of companies, including tech giants like Google and Facebook, that faced uncertainty over their ability to send data between the U.S. and Europe, which has much stricter regulations on data privacy.
Details of the agreement were not provided. It came the same day EU officials agreed on sweeping new digital rules to rein in the power of big tech companies such as Facebook and Google.
“Privacy and security are key elements of my digital agenda, and today we’ve agreed to unprecedented protections for data privacy and security for our citizens," Biden said. “This new arrangement will enhance the Privacy Shield framework, promote growth and innovation in Europe and the United States, and help companies — both small and large — compete in the digital economy.”
Von der Leyen said the agreement “will enable predictable and trustworthy data flows between the EU and the U.S., safeguarding privacy and civil liberties.”
The dispute stems from a complaint filed nearly a decade ago by Austrian lawyer and privacy activist Max Schrems, who was concerned about how Facebook handled his data in light of revelations about U.S. government cybersnooping from former U.S. National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden.
Along the way, a ruling by the EU's top...
