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Category European Commission

Implications for data privacy in the UK in the wake of a deal or ‘no deal’ Brexit

May 29, 2020, Categories  Council of Ministers, data protection, EU General Data Protection Regulation, European Commission, European Data Protection Supervisor, News, Thought Leadership Comments No comments

Having left the European Union (EU) on 31 January 2020, the UK is currently in a Brexit transition period that runs out on 31 December 2020. Whilst the other 27 Member States of the EU have been grappling with containing the Covid-19 pandemic, you could be forgiven for thinking these countries as well as the UK have taken their eyes off the ball when it comes to striking a Brexit deal.

If you think that to be the case, think again.

If the UK wants an extension, it will need to ask for this by 30 June 2020 and the European Commission has already indicated that in the circumstances this would be granted...

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European Commission set to call time on Privacy Shield

September 28, 2018, Categories  EU General Data Protection Regulation, European Commission, Legal update, News Comments No comments

Time has almost run out for EU-US Privacy Shield. It’s highly probable that by 18 October 2018, the European Commission will agree with the European Parliament vote taken in July 2018 to suspend EU-US Privacy Shield, the international data sharing agreement between the US and the European Union.

This won’t come as any surprise within the data privacy community and in many respects has been on the cards since the Facebook and Cambridge Analytica scandal earlier this year that underlined the importance of monitoring mechanisms intended to protect citizens from the misuse of their personal data on an industrial scale.

But it would be wrong to write off Privacy Shield as bein...

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US companies are behind the curve on understanding how GDPR impacts their businesses

May 12, 2018, Categories  EU General Data Protection Regulation, European Commission, European Parliament, GDPR Handbook, Legal update, News, Thought Leadership Comments No comments

There’s an eerie lack of awareness about the impact of the GDPR on US businesses that target consumers in the European Union. According to recent research by the IAPP, complexity of laws, inadequate budget and too little time combined with the lack of qualified and trained staff have conspired to perpetuate this lack of readiness by US companies.

Here in Europe, many companies and organisations have been bracing themselves for the biggest shake-up in data protection, privacy and security for over two decades that’s fully effective from 25 May 2018 – in 13 days’ time.

I’ve been in conversations with senior US-executives who’ve boldly told me that the “GDPR doesn’t apply to ...

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GDPR by Royal Appointment

April 28, 2018, Categories  EU General Data Protection Regulation, European Commission, Guru in a Bottle, Henley Business School, News, Thought Leadership Comments No comments

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The joys of data hygiene

April 7, 2018, Categories  EU General Data Protection Regulation, European Commission, GDPR Handbook, Henley Business School, News, Thought Leadership Comments No comments

Unfortunately, the article in the current edition of my favourite business newspaper The Economist in explaining the GDPR was riddled with errors. Tut tut!

Here’s an example: “Data Subjects can demand a copy of the data held on them (data portability) …” which as we all know is a subject access request (SAR) and isn’t an absolute right under the GDPR.

Another error in the article on GDPR is the bold assertion: “The GDPR is prescriptive about what organisations have to do to comply.”

Er, no it isn’t. Few bits go into detail, like the requirements for a data protection impact assessment (Art.35, GDPR) or a subject access request (Art. 15, GDPR).

The GDPR is a deliberate mo...

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Lack of transparency with Facebook and other social media sites will be forced to come to an end as a result of GDPR

April 7, 2018, Categories  EU General Data Protection Regulation, European Commission, Guru in a Bottle, Henley Business School, Legal update, News, Social marketing practice, Thought Leadership Comments No comments

The Economist reports today (7 April 2018) that there’s been a bit of wake up call for Facebook and all other social media giants as a result of the furore over the mis-use of personal data. Mark Zuckerberg is openly admitting that Facebook data of up to 87 million people – 37 million more than previously reported – may have been improperly shared with Cambridge Analytica.

As a result of a data breach on a scale not seen since Yahoo!, Americans are looking enviously at Europe where data protection, privacy and security laws protecting the individual are now the global ‘gold standard’ as a result of the GDPR that’s fully enforceable from 25 May – just 34 working days fr...

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Follow the leader. Why the US needs to learn the lessons of data protection from Europe

April 7, 2018, Categories  European Commission, GDPR Handbook, News Comments No comments

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Not a good start to the New Year for Apple

January 5, 2018, Categories  Consumer behaviour, EU General Data Protection Regulation, European Commission, Henley Business School, Legal update, News, Thought Leadership Comments No comments

Apple has just issued a second customer warning for owners of its iPhones, iPads and MAC products that they are affected by a processor flaw that could leave them vulnerable to hackers.

The US tech giant urged its millions of customers to only download software from trusted sources after the security vulnerabilities, known as Meltdown and Spectre, were revealed on Wednesday.

According to the Press Association (PA News), there’s no evidence that the security flaws that affect computer processors built by Intel and ARM – have so far been exploited by hackers, although companies including Microsoft have been working to provide urgent fixes.

Apple says it had released software ...

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Legality of Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC’s) hangs in the balance awaiting decision by CJEU

October 3, 2017, Categories  European Commission, Legal update, Thought Leadership Comments No comments

Ireland’s High Court has just ruled today (Tuesday 3 October 2017) that the decision to ban the use of Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC) by social media giants like Facebook, Microsoft and Google to transfer users’ personal data to the US must be initially decided by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU).

Giving her judgment in open court, Irish High Court Judge Caroline Costello said: “I have decided to ask the Court of Justice for a preliminary ruling. European Union law guarantees a high level of protection to EU citizens…they are entitled to an equivalent high level of protection when their data is transferred outside of the European Economic Area.”

T...

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Interview with Liberum Investment Bank on the consequences of the GDPR for institutional investors

August 6, 2017, Categories  Banks, EU General Data Protection Regulation, European Commission, News, Thought Leadership Comments No comments

This is a short 5 minute filmed interview produced by Liberum Investment Bank for its clients in London and New York on the Directive 2016/679 (General Data Protection Regulation). Recorded in London in July 2017.

Copyright Liberum Investment Bank 2017.

 

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