Cecilia Alvarez

Director of Privacy Policy Engagement, Meta, Spain

Cecilia Álvarez Rigaudias is the EMEA Privacy Policy Director at Meta since March 2019. From 2015 to 2019, she served as European Privacy Officer Lead of Pfizer, Vice-Chair of the EFPIA Data Protection Group and Chairwoman of IPPC-Europe. For an interim period, she was also the Legal Lead of the Spanish Pfizer subsidiaries. She formerly worked 18 years in a reputed Spanish law firm, leading the data protection, IT and ecommerce areas of practice as well as the LATAM Data Protection Working Group.

Cecilia was the Chairwoman of APEP (Spanish Privacy Professional Association) until June and currently in charge of its international affairs. She is also the Spanish member of CEDPO (Confederation of European Data Protection Organisations) and member of the Leadership Council of The Sedona Conference (W-6).

Cecilia is a member of the Spanish Royal Academy of Jurisprudence and Legislation in the section of the Law on Technologies of the Information and the Knowledge. She formed part of the Volunteer Group of Privacy Experts of the OECD (Working Party on Information Security and Privacy; WPISP) in charge of the 2013 review of the OECD guidelines governing the protection of privacy and transborder data flows of personal data.

Cecilia has written numerous publications on data protection and regularly lectures on data protection, IT and e-commerce at different Master’s programmes and seminars

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Rachael Annear

Partner, Freshfields, UK

Rachael is an experienced counsel specialising in laws concerning data, including the GDPR, with a particular interest in the financial services, retail and tech sectors. Taking advantage of her IP/IT and Information law background Rachael regularly advises clients on data matters and is experienced in assisting international organisations on complex data strategy. Rachael advises on the full range of data matters particularly in the context of multi-national deals, compliance, data crises, investigations and litigation. She helps clients on all aspects of GDPR compliance including complex questions concerning data transfers, disclosure to regulators, export and extra-territorial effect and assists clients facing ICO enforcement action. Rachael has spent time as a legal advisor to the Cabinet Office and has experience in multinational deals, data crises, litigation and legislative drafting.

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Rosa Barcelo

Privacy & Cybersecurity Partner, McDermott Will & Emery, Belgium

Rosa Barcelo has 25 years of experience working on data privacy and cyber security. Currently Rosa works as a data protection lawyer in the law firm McDermott Will & Emery, based in Brussels. She helps companies develop global privacy compliance programs , advises organizations on structuring international data transfers, completing Data Protection Impact Assessments, drafting data processor agreements, and advises on personal data breaches.

Her practice has particular focus on cutting-edge IT issues, particularly in the electronic communications sector, marketing, programmatic advertising, and online tracking technologies.

Rosa’s previous experience includes her role as Deputy Head of Unit in DG CONNECT in the European Commission, where she led legislative deliberations over the proposed e-Privacy Regulation. Rosa’s work with the office of the EDPS focused on a wide range of ICT-related issues. She worked closely with national supervisory authorities participating in the former Article 29 Working Party.

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Cary Bassin

Senior Counsel, AI Privacy and Governance, OpenAI, USA

Cary Bassin works on OpenAI’s legal team in San Francisco, where he advises on AI privacy and governance across the company’s technologies and services. Prior to joining OpenAI, Cary counseled product, regulatory, and compliance issues on Google’s privacy legal team. He also spent several years at the U.S. Department of Justice and the White House National Security Council, working on a range of foreign policy and national security matters, including legal issues related to surveillance and data governance. He earned his J.D. at Harvard Law School, and a B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley.

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Océane Bayrou

Senior Privacy Counsel – Privacy Leader EMEA, GE HealthCare, France

Océane Bayrou is Senior Privacy Counsel EMEA – EMEA Privacy Leader for GE HealthCare. She is an expert in international data protection law with 15 years of experience either in GE HealthCare's Global Privacy and Data Trust office or in private practice as a qualified French lawyer. In her role, she is responsible for leading the privacy agenda for her region and advising while navigating challenges related to emerging technology, privacy and AI legislation. It focuses on compliant privacy solutions for businesses while having an entrepreneurial spirit.

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Colin Bennett

Professor, University of Victoria, Canada

Colin Bennett is Emeritus Professor of Political Science and Fellow at the Center for Global Studies at the University of Victoria, British Columbia. For over thirty years, his research has focused on the comparative analysis of privacy protection policy at domestic and international levels. In addition to numerous scholarly and newspaper articles, he has published seven books on these subjects, including The Governance of Privacy (MIT Press, 2006), as well several policy reports for national and international agencies. His current work focusses on the importance of privacy for democratic rights, and on the capture and use of voters’ personal data by political parties in Western democracies.

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Claudia Berg

General Counsel, Information Commissioner’s Office, UK

Claudia is the General Counsel for the Information Commissioner’s Office. She heads up the ICO’s Legal Service and provides strategic legal advice to the Commissioner, the ICO’s Executive Team and Management Board.

Claudia joined the ICO in April 2021 from the Competition & Markets Authority where she was responsible for the legal oversight of the CMA’s entire competition law enforcement portfolio, from the launch of an investigation through to decision and subsequent litigation before the Courts. Prior to the CMA, Claudia worked at Linklaters London, advising clients on all aspects of EU and UK competition law.

Claudia is a dual-qualified Solicitor in England & Wales and Germany. She holds a Maîtrise en droit from the University of Paris 1 (Panthéon-Sorbonne) and a Master’s degree from King’s College London.

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Susan Bingham

Group Data Protection Officer and Director of Information Assurance, The Guardian, UK

Susan Bingham is Director of Information Assurance and Group Data Protection Officer at Guardian News & Media Limited. Her interests lie in finding data privacy solutions to enable businesses to offer their products and services to a multinational audience in a way which is both compliant with law and aligned to their value proposition, and to empower consumers to navigate the digital and data privacy landscape in a way that respects their rights. She is passionate about the inherent value in protecting data privacy rights for the benefit of individuals, and as a way to enhance business strategy.

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Laura Brodahl

Senior Associate, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, Belgium

Laura Brodahl is a senior associate in the EU data regulatory practice of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. Based in Brussels, she specializes in advising clients on digital regulatory issues. Beyond GDPR compliance, Laura has expertise in a wide range of data regulations including the GDPR, the Digital Service Act (DSA) and NIS2.

Laura regularly provides strategic and practical guidance to data driven sectors both as all-around counselling and in their interactions with supervisory authorities. She has considerable experience advising on innovative technologies, including in FinTech and Open Banking, gaming, and biometrics. She is recognised in the Legal 500 and is a Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP/E). Laura above all prides herself on having a true passion for her practice.

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Jeff Brown

General Counsel, Global Privacy Officer, TELUS International, USA

Jeff manages a team of legal and privacy professionals responsible for TELUS International’s global privacy, global data governance, AI governance, and anti-bribery and corruption programs, as well as providing public-company Board and C-suite counsel for real estate matters and strategic deals. Jeff Chairs the TI (U.S.) Retirement Savings Plan Committee and acts as a director on several subsidiary boards.

Jeff holds certifications in privacy from the International Association of Privacy Professionals, and previously held certification as a corporate governance professional from the Society for Corporate Governance.

Prior to his current role, Jeff held leadership positions with TTEC, HP, EDS, and law firm roles with Lathrop & Gage, Dickinson Wright, and Winston & Strawn.

Jeff is a member of the Association of Corporate Counsel Colorado Board of Directors, and volunteers with The Friends of Red Rocks, and various charities focused on poverty alleviation.

Jeff holds a JD from the University of Michigan Law School and studied at the Ross School of Business

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Dr Mira Burri

Professor of International Economic and Internet Law, University of Lucerne, Switzerland

Mira Burri is Professor of International Economic and Internet Law at the Faculty of Law of the University of Lucerne, Switzerland. She teaches international intellectual property, media, internet and trade law. Mira’s current research interests are in the areas of digital trade, data protection and data governance. Mira is the principal investigator of the project ‘Trade Law 4.0’ (ERC Consolidator Grant 2021–2026). She consults the European Parliament, UNESCO, ASEAN, the WEF and others on issues of digital innovation. Mira is also a member of the Research Council of the Swiss National Science Foundation.

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Efrain Castaneda Mogollon

Privacy Counsel Director, OneTrust, UK

Efrain Castaneda Mogollon serves as a Privacy Counsel Director at OneTrust, the Trust Intelligence Platform, unlocking every company’s value and potential to thrive by doing what’s good for people and the planet. OneTrust connects privacy, GRC, ethics, and ESG teams, data, and processes, so all companies can collaborate seamlessly and put trust at the centre of their operations and culture. In his role, Efrain supports the OneTrust Privacy & Data Governance Cloud where he advises companies on how to transform privacy compliance into trusted and ethical data use. Efrain earned a Law degree (J.D.) from Mexico and an MPhil with accent on regulation of emerging technologies, from Tilburg University School of Law in the Netherlands and holds CIPP/E, CIPM, FIP certifications.

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James Castro-Edwards

Counsel, Arnold & Porter, UK

James Castro-Edwards provides counsel on global data protection compliance projects for multinational companies, advises on data protection issues, and helps companies respond to data breach situations. He represents a broad range of clients including financial, media and technology organizations, and medical device and pharmaceutical companies. In addition to advising clients on data protection issues, James has created innovative data protection support, audit and training programs for clients.

Earlier in his career, James was in private practice and served as a Solicitor in the data protection group at PwC Legal. He is widely published in a variety of titles, a regular public speaker on data protection issues and wrote the text books on the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) for The Law Society. He is an IAPP Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP/E).

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Kate Colleary

Director, Pembroke Privacy, Ireland

Kate Colleary is Founder and Director of Pembroke Privacy, a leading data protection consultancy based in Ireland and the UK. She is highly regarded worldwide as a data protection expert. Kate is honoured to represent the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP) as its Country Leader in Ireland and has recently been awarded the prestigious Westin Emeritus Fellow title, which recognises world leaders in data protection and privacy. She has been awarded ‘Best in Data Protection’ by the Global 100 which recognises the world’s leading firms and individuals who are leaders within their chosen areas of specialisation. She has also recently been awarded the “Fellow of Information Privacy” (FIP) qualification by the IAPP which is reserved for seasoned professionals in the privacy world. Kate is a qualified Solicitor and a Certified Information Privacy Professional and has extensive experience assisting and advising businesses to navigate the complexities of data protection, privacy and AI laws.

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Adriana Collins

Senior Counsel, International Privacy, Paramount, UK

Adriana Collins is Senior Counsel of International Privacy at Paramount Global. Based in London, Adriana provides privacy support to Paramount’s streaming services and production activities across the world. She has a special interest in direct marketing and advertising as well as the interplay between privacy and online safety. With several years of experience in privacy management and a deep understanding of evolving privacy laws, Adriana has developed a pragmatic and holistic approach to data protection compliance.

Prior to joining Paramount nearly three years ago, she held the role of Deputy Chief Privacy Officer at Clarivate, a data analytics company. She also has prior experience as a legal counsel in a range of in-house positions and as a legal consultant.

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Sinead Connolly

Senior Privacy Lawyer, J.P. Morgan, UK

 

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Rebecca Cousin

Partner, Slaughter and May, UK

Rebecca is a partner in Slaughter and May’s corporate and commercial group in London, co-heads the firm’s global data protection and privacy practice and is a member of our cyber advisory unit. She advises on all aspects of data protection and privacy, including cyber or data breach preparation and incident response, challenges with new technologies, implications for contractual arrangements, privacy aspects of M&A and investigations, and on companies’ policies and procedures. Rebecca sits on the UK Information Commissioner’s Office’s Legal Reference Panel and is Vice-Chair of the City of London Law Society's Data Law Committee. She is also a frequent contributor to data protection journals and events.

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Richard Cumbley

Partner, Linklaters, UK

Richard advises multinationals and governments on complex information management and data privacy issues. He has worked on data related projects across the globe, including major data security incidents, large-scale privacy litigation, appearances before regulators, contentious and large-scale subject access issues, online monitoring techniques, government access programs, data localisation and “big data”.

Richard also counsels clients on the implications of new technology such as 3D printing, blockchain technology, interactive TV and IOT.

In addition, Richard advises on complex technology contracts, including large scale outsourcing, cloud services, technology development and related services contracts in both contentious and non-contentious environments.

Based in London and Dublin, Richard has advised on IT, data protection, information governance and outsourcing deals in more than half of the firm’s offices around the world. He also works closely with the firm’s leading Corporate lawyers on technology and separation issues associated with corporate transactions. He is ranked by both Legal 500 and Chambers as in the first tier of UK privacy and data lawyers.

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Valentina De Giorgis

Associate General Counsel - DPO, TELUS International, Germany

Lawyer (Chile, England, and Wales) specialized in Data Privacy, AI Governance, and Tech (LL.M. University of Freiburg, CIPPE, CIPM). Currently Associate General Counsel, Director, and Data Protection Officer EMEA at TELUS International (Next-gen CX digital solutions and AI Data Solutions).

Additionally, external General Counsel for Elnora AI (AI Biotechnology and Drug Discovery Research), and advisor to various start-ups in the field of new technologies.

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Arnd De Weirdt

International Privacy Counsel & DPO EMEA, Randstad Sourceright, Belgium

Arnd is international privacy counsel and DPO EMEA with Randstad Sourceright and Randstad Enterprise Group. With the support of a team of privacy experts, Arnd is responsible for the development, implementation, and continuous improvement of the privacy program. In his role as privacy counsel, Arnd operates as legal subject matter expert on data protection law. Finally, he reports to executive management on the organization’s overall privacy posture.

Arnd has several years of experience in providing legal advice and driving privacy transformation programmes – first as consultant, then as in-house privacy professional. In his latest roles, he defines privacy requirements and is consequently responsible to implement them into the business. He knows what works in theory, and what actually works in practice.

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Heather Deixler

Partner, Latham & Watkins, USA

Heather Deixler counsels public and private companies operating at the intersection of healthcare, life sciences, and technology on transactional and regulatory matters. She advises a wide range of public and private companies, including healthcare providers and healthcare systems, digital health, e-commerce, medical device, therapeutics, genetics, and bioscience companies on cutting-edge matters and initiatives including:

• Innovative healthcare delivery systems, including value-based enterprises, clinically integrated networks, IPAs, Medicare ACOs, and other value-based payment programs
• AI / machine learning solutions
• Data rights
  Data use and protection
• Genomic privacy
• General data privacy and security matters, including data privacy and security policies and procedures, and online privacy policies and terms of service
• Information blocking and interoperability
• Real-world data / evidence generation
• Data breach response

Ms. Deixler focuses on all aspects of digital health, including advising clients on various laws and regulations governing healthcare regulatory issues, as well as data privacy and consumer protection.

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Benjamin Dolan

Senior Data Protection Manager | Head of Privacy Operations, Deliveroo, UK

Experienced data protection and privacy leader - providing thought leadership and pragmatic framework designs to ensure ongoing regulatory compliance, within the UK, Europe, Middle East and the US.

Embraces challenges with current and emerging technology, legal grey areas and regulatory enforcement action, including the latest privacy tooling, GenAI or adtech. Previously a management consultant working on regulatory programmes in financial services within investment, merchant and wholesales banks.

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Philippe Dufresne

Commissioner, Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada

Philippe Dufresne was appointed privacy commissioner of Canada on June 27, 2022. A leading legal expert on human rights, administrative and constitutional law, he previously served as the law clerk and parliamentary counsel of the House of Commons and as the Canadian Human Rights Commission’s senior general counsel. In 2014, he served as president of the International Commission of Jurists, an organization devoted to the protection of the rule of law and judicial independence in Canada and internationally. He holds degrees in common and civil law from McGill University’s Faculty of Law and has been a part-time professor with the University of Ottawa’s Faculty of Common Law and Queen’s University’s Faculty of Law where he taught international criminal law, human rights and appellate advocacy.

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John Edwards

Information Commissioner, Information Commissioner’s Office, UK

John Edwards took up his five year term as the sixth UK Information Commissioner on 4 January 2022. Prior to this, John served as New Zealand’s Privacy Commissioner for eight years, building an international reputation in data protection and privacy including Chairing the now Global Privacy Assembly. He also worked in a range of roles including as a policy advisor to the NZ Government, a solicitor and barrister for over 20 years in the public and private sector, and even had a stint as a mountaineer.

The ICO is a whole economy regulator, and John is focussed on enforcing the Children’s code, a pioneering, world-leading code of practice designed to keep children safe online. He has also spearheaded our work to address harm to communities currently underserved by data protection law, and make playing his role in making Japan’s concept of Data Free Flows with Trust a tangible reality through fora like the G7 and OECD.

John’s vision and mission is for the ICO to be a regulator that empowers people to confidentially share information for personal and public benefit and for organisations use information to invest and innovate in the digital economy.

John’s motto: “We spend once, at the centre, prompting savings for thousands of businesses across the economy.”

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Dr David Erdos

Professor of Law and Open Society, WYNG Fellow in Law, University of Cambridge, UK

Dr David Erdos is Professor of Law and the Open Society and Director of the Centre for Intellectual Property and Information Law in the Faculty of Law at Cambridge. He is also WYNG Fellow in Law at Trinity Hall. David's current research focuses on data protection especially as it interacts with freedom of expression and freedom of the arts and sciences. Drawing on his background in both law and political science, much of his work has engaged in systematic comparative analysis of different legal jurisdictions blending qualitative, quantitative and doctrinal analysis.

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Jane Finlayson-Brown

Partner, A&O Shearman, France

Jane regularly advises companies on innovative and frontier technologies that rely on the process of biometric data. These projects often involve grey zone areas where there is a heightened privacy risk, where Jane helps companies make strategic decisions. She also advises on the use of data in the provision of consumer and business products, including on issues relating to repurposing of data, profiling, AI, ad-tech and direct marketing and on a wide range of other data protection issues such as data subject requests, data security breaches, data protection investigations, cross border data transfers, transfers of data to overseas regulators, customer relationship management, employee monitoring, data protection policies and procedures and website compliance issues.

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Fernando Hortal Foronda

Digital Policy Officer, BEUC

Mr Hortal Foronda is a Policy Officer at BEUC – The European Consumer Organisation. His policy portfolio includes data protection, e-Privacy and platform regulation. He has previously worked for the European Partnership for Democracy as an advocate for platform regulation and data protection and as researcher on multiple areas of EU policies for various organisations including the European Parliament Research Service, universities, think tanks and consultancies. He holds an MSc in European Studies by the London School of Economics and Political Science.

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Sue Foster

Data Privacy Director, Global Clinical Solutions, AstraZeneca, UK

Sue Foster joined AstraZeneca in April 2023 as Technology Data Privacy Director within Clinical Operations. Prior to joining AstraZeneca, Sue spent over two decades in private legal practice with several international law firms. Her work has focused on the biopharma sector, from the largest international drug development collaborations to ultra-orphan indications. Sue is particularly interested in the challenges that sponsors of global clinical studies face in aligning global technology systems and organisational processes with local privacy and clinical regulatory requirements. With the rising importance of AI in drug discovery and clinical development, Sue’s work engages with AI and privacy as fundamentally interwoven elements of the compliance puzzle.

Sue is qualified as a Solicitor in England & Wales and as a lawyer in California, USA. She holds a JD from Stanford Law School, a PhD from Cornell University, and an AB from Princeton University. Sue also holds the IAPP’s CIPP/Europe certification.

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Fedelma Good

Data Protection & ePrivacy Consultant, Fedelma Good Consulting, UK

 

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Alison Hall

Member of the Ethics Advisory Board, Our Future Health, and Senior Advisor (Humanities), PHG Foundation, UK

Alison is a senior humanities advisor at the PHG Foundation, a health policy think tank, part of University of Cambridge. Her research spans the regulation, governance and ethics relating to the use of novel biomedical technologies to improve population health, with a focus the use of genomic data for clinical care, research and personalised healthcare. Her work includes, Black Box Medicine and Transparency, a Wellcome Trust funded project exploring ethical and regulatory requirements for interpretability and transparency; Project DELTA, an NIHR funded consortium for which she evaluated the ethical and regulatory implications of using digital pathology and risk prediction algorithms for earlier diagnosis and treatment of oesophageal cancer; an analysis of ethical and regulatory implications of using polygenic risk scores for cardiovascular disease and breast cancer; and a report on The GDPR and genomic data, an evaluation of the impact of the GDPR on the use of genomic data in research and healthcare. She is a member of Our Future Health’s Ethics Advisory Board, and Data Security and Information Governance Committee. Alison has professional qualifications in law and nursing and a master’s qualification in healthcare ethics.

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Katie Hewson

Partner, Stephenson Harwood, UK

Katie Hewson leads Stephenson Harwood’s data protection practice. She was awarded "Privacy Leader of the Year: Legal" at the PICCASO Privacy Awards in December 2022 and is recognised as a Next Generation Partner for data protection, privacy and cyber security by The Legal 500 UK 2023, in which she is described as “a valued advisor in relation to EU and UK GDPR matters”. She is also ranked as an 'Up and Coming' lawyer for data protection and information law in Chambers UK 2023, which states she "has excellent technical knowledge and provides clear, practical advice".

Katie regularly advises clients across a variety of industries on the privacy implications of digital transformation projects and emerging and innovative technologies, including AI, apps, employee monitoring, bring your own device, biometrics and facial recognition and profiling. She has extensive experience leading international GDPR compliance projects and advises on data protection contracts, transparency issues, international personal data transfers, data sharing, cyber security and personal data breaches. Katie also advises a variety of clients on direct marketing, ad tech, social media and cookies issues under the e-privacy regime.

Katie has acted for clients facing ICO enforcement action on potential data protection and freedom of information law breaches, winning successful outcomes for her clients in relation to subject access requests, breach reporting and FOIA requests.

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Tim Hickman

Partner, White & Case, UK

Tim is head of the Firm's Data, Privacy & Cybersecurity practice at White & Case and advises on all aspects of privacy and data protection law and regulation. Tim has a detailed knowledge of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the UK GDPR, and co-authored White & Case's GDPR Handbook, which provides in-depth guidance on the impact of that legislation, and White & Case's GDPR National Implementation Guide, which analyses national GDPR implementing laws in all 30 EEA jurisdictions and the UK. Tim is also a Contributing Editor of the International Comparative Legal Guide to Data Protection. Clients appreciate Tim's ability to find pragmatic and commercial solutions to complex multi-jurisdictional data protection questions. Tim has significant experience of working with a wide range of clients in the UK, the EU, Asia and the US.

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Brent Homan

Commissioner, Office of the Data Protection Authority, Guernsey

Before taking up the Data Protection Commissioner role in 2024, Brent Homan was Deputy Commissioner, Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada and responsible for enforcing Canada's federal public and private sector privacy laws. A global leader in regulatory collaboration, Brent created the Global Privacy Enforcement Network (GPEN) Privacy Sweep and co-chairs alliances including the International Enforcement Cooperation Working Group of the Global Privacy Assembly. Brent envisions the Bailiwick of Guernsey as a model for the global data protection community with a public and private sector that embraces compliance and elevates trust and consumer confidence. 

The Data Protection Commissioner is a statutory role and is an ex-officio, non-voting member of the Data Protection Authority and acts as the chief executive of that Authority with responsibility for day-to-day operations.

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Johannes Jördens

General Counsel, Data Privacy, Resideo, UK

 

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Konstantinos Kaouras

Data Protection Officer, Our Future Health, UK

Konstantinos Kaouras is a Data Protection Officer at Our Future Health, the UK’s largest ever health research programme, where he spearheads the development of a comprehensive data protection compliance programme safeguarding the personal data of over 1 million volunteers. He brings extensive experience in addressing data protection requirements within health research organisations, having collaborated closely with the ICO as part of his organisation’s participation to the Sandbox programme.

Prior their role at Our Future Health, Konstantinos served as a Data Protection Officer at The London Clinic, where he played a pivotal role in elevating the clinic’s privacy programme to match the excellence of its clinical operations. Earlier in his career, Konstantinos held the position of Data Protection Manager at Nuffield Health where he led impactful compliance initiatives across the organisation’s commercial and charity sectors.

Konstantinos holds dual qualification as a solicitor in England & Wales and Greece. He earned his LL.M. from University College London, with a focus on navigating the intersection of competition and data protection law, complemented by an LL.M. in Public Law and an LL.B. from the University of Athens.

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Elena Kazakevicius

Legal Officer, European Data Protection Board

Elena joined the legal team of the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) Secretariat in 2021. She focuses, among others, on matters related to the cooperation and consistency mechanisms established by the GDPR, as well as on national and European procedural law requirements applicable to the handling of cases involving cross-border processing of personal data. Prior to joining the EDPB, Elena worked in law firms and in the Bulgarian public administration. She holds LLM degrees in International and European law from the University of Toulouse (France) and the University of Dundee (UK), as well as an LLM in Intellectual Property and ICT Law from KU Leuven, Belgium.

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Mark Keddie

Chief Privacy Officer, SITA, Switzerland

Mark Keddie is the Chief Privacy Officer for SITA, the world’s leading specialist in air transport communications and information technology headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.

As a privacy career professional, Mark has global experience across multiple industries including software, telco, oil & gas, government and digital marketing. As CPO for BT Group, he oversaw the successful application for BT Group’s Binding Corporate Rules (Controller and Processor) - a first for a UK telco.

Mark has spoken at a wide variety of external events and contributed to in-house and external publications. His interest in privacy has allowed him to develop wider professional experience in governance, risk, ethics and compliance.

Mark holds various academic and professional qualifications in privacy, IT and fraud investigations. His outside interests include music and ultra-running

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Ulrich Kelber

Federal Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information, BfDI, Germany

In January of 2019 Ulrich Kelber was elected Federal Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information for Germany.

For this charge he resigned as a Member of the German Bundestag, which had been his dedication for nearly twenty years. He even won a directly-elected seat in the Bonn constituency in 2002, 2005, 2009, 2013 and 2017.

During that time he was the Parliamentary State Secretary in the Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection for five years from 2013 to 2018.

Before that, from 2005 to 2013, he was the Deputy Chairman of the parliamentary group of the SPD in the Bundestag. He had responsibility for the areas of the environment, nature conservation, nuclear safety, food, agriculture, consumer protection, and sustainability.

Ulrich Kelber is a professional computer scientist and works as knowledge management consultant at an IT company since 2002.

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Nicola Kerr-Shaw

Counsel - Cyber, AI, privacy and technology, Skadden, UK

Nicola Kerr-Shaw represents a wide range of clients in global matters pertaining to artificial intelligence (AI), cybersecurity, data and privacy, and complex technologies. She works in tandem with companies to creatively and effectively help them achieve their commercial goals. She has extensive experience assisting clients in cyber preparedness, crisis management and incident response, including considering various regulatory obligations under privacy law, financial regulation and other regulatory requirements. Prior to joining Skadden, Ms. Kerr-Shaw worked for more than a decade at a major worldwide financial institution, where she built sophisticated global legal governance structures for cybersecurity, privacy, data and AI from the ground up and prepared for and led cyber incident responses for the enterprise-wide legal team. Ms. Kerr-Shaw has extensive experience advising U.K. and EU companies on new and emerging financial technology, utilizing her knowledge of financial regulations and data- and technology-focused laws to effectively counsel clients.

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Peter Kimpian

Secretary to the Committee of Convention 108, Council of Europe

Peter is the Secretary to the Committee of the Council of Europe Privacy and Data Protection Convention, known as Convention 108 and currently working – among others – on preparing the implementation of the modernised Convention 108+. Previously in charge with law enforcement and national security related privacy matters, with internet governance issues and with standard setting activities based on this Convention. Prior to that he was involved in topics like the EU Data Protection Directive, the GDPR, EU Law Enforcement Directive, EUROPOL regulation, EU PNR Agreements with third states, Terrorist Financing Tracking Programme, and the EU-US Privacy Shield agreement. He has also been active since 2020 in technical assistance programmes on cybersecurity, cybercrime and data protection in Africa, Asia and Latin-America.

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Joanne Kirby

Privacy Counsel, Palantir Technologies, UK

Joanne is Global Privacy Counsel with Palantir Technologies providing legal advice across Palantir’s commercial and governmental business on matters relating to data protection, information security and artificial intelligence. Joanne is also a dual qualified barrister, called to the Bar of Ireland and the Bar of England and Wales.

Prior to working at Palantir, Joanne worked in the media and hospitality sectors creating and implementing effective data protection management and incident response programmes across multiple jurisdictions.

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Georgina Kon

Partner, Linklaters, UK

Georgie is a partner at Linklaters who specialises in all aspects of privacy, digital regulation and cyber security. She has helped many household names put in place innovative AI, privacy and online safety compliance structures, supporting them to harness the power of their data and technology safely and lawfully. Georgie also regularly advises on regulatory issues in connection with the use of innovative technology (including genAI), social listening, the Internet of Things, big data, digital health and more by global groups.

Georgie co-leads Linklaters’ cybersecurity and online safety practices, and its multi-disciplinary privacy and cyber investigations teams. She is recognised as a leading individual in the Legal 500 for Data protection, privacy and cybersecurity. She is a co-Chair of the IT Law Summer School in Cambridge and a guest lecturer for the Chevening Cyber Scholars Programme.

Clients describe Georgie as “pragmatic and friendly with foresight and an eye on new innovations, both technological and legal”, “technically savvy” and “professional, highly skilled and responsive” (Chambers, Data Protection and Information Law 2023).

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Paul Lavery

Partner, McCann Fitzgerald, Ireland

Paul is the head of the firm’s Technology and Innovation Group and advises on a wide range of information technology, data protection, intellectual property, confidentiality and freedom of information issues. He advises on the supply and implementation of new IT systems, the licensing of software and the ownership, exploitation and licensing of intellectual property rights.

Paul is a leading expert on data protection and advises a large number of private sector entities and public bodies on their data protection obligations under existing and prospective data protection law, including advising on subject access requests, data security incidents, marketing obligations and consents, record retention matters, data protection notices, policies and privacy statements, data controller and data processor registrations as well as solutions to facilitate the transfer of data outside the EEA.

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Dr Orla Lynskey

Associate Professor, LSE Law School, UK, and Visiting Professor, College of Europe, Belgium

Orla Lynskey is an Associate Professor, having joined the LSE Law School in 2012 and a Visiting Professor at the College of Europe. She teaches and conducts research in the areas of data protection, technology regulation, digital rights and EU law. She holds an LLB (Law and French) from Trinity College Dublin, an LLM in EU Law from the College of Europe (Bruges) and a PhD from the University of Cambridge. Prior to completing her doctorate, she worked as an academic assistant at the College of Europe (Bruges) and in public and private competition law practice in Brussels. She is an editor of International Data Privacy Law (OUP) and a Modern Law Review editorial committee member. She is currently a member of the Ada Lovelace Institute's "Rethinking Data" working group.

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Timothy Ma

Co-founder and Chief Legal Office, k-ID, Hong Kong

A founding member of k-ID, Timothy Ma leads k-ID’s legal and regulatory direction and supports its mission to democratize access to age-appropriate experiences online by making it easier for developers to navigate the complex global landscape.

With a passion for child online safety, Timothy has been a vocal advocate at global forums and co-founded k-ID to promote a safe and secure digital space for youth. His distinguished career, marked by roles at top US law firms and Tencent, underscores his commitment to privacy rights, ethical business, protecting young internet users, and inspiring others in law and technology.
Prior to founding k-ID, Timothy worked at Tencent for 12 years and was the Data Protection Officer and Head of International Privacy and Data Protection at Tencent.

Timothy has played a significant role in shaping data privacy policies and maintaining the integrity and legality of services on an international scale. He and his teams have been recognized by renowned industry legal organizations such as Legal 500, Financial Times, and Asian Legal Business, highlighting their significant contributions under his leadership. Timothy also serves as a board member of the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP) Asia Advisory Board.

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Rachel Masterton

Deputy Commissioner, Office of the Data Protection Authority, Guernsey

Rachel joined the ODPA in June 2013 and deputises for and supports the Data Protection Commissioner. Her role includes oversight of the regulation and enforcement function of the ODPA and management of the Communications Team. Her role on the senior leadership team includes contributing to strategic planning, development and governance.

Rachel began her career in data protection with eight and a half years at Guernsey Police as their data protection and information security officer, prior to joining the ODPA. During this time, she gained the ISEB Certificate in Data Protection and invaluable hands-on experience of dealing with data protection issues ‘at the coalface’. In June 2018, Rachel completed a LLM Information Rights Law and Practice; her dissertation was titled ‘Leaving the EU: the data protection implications of a ‘Hard Brexit’ for UK businesses with EU data flows and clients’.

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Juliette Mazilier

Associate, Technology and Data Practice, A&O Shearman, France

Juliette is an Associate in the Corporate department of Allen & Overy in Paris, and is part of the Technology and Data practice. She is dedicated to information technology and data protection matters.

Juliette advises on data protection compliance projects, in particular with regards to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). She also drafts and negotiates complex IT agreements and assists international clients with the digitalization of their activities, including in relation to cybersecurity and data monetization issues.

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Peter McLaughlin

Partner, Rimon, USA

 

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Christopher Millard

Professor of Privacy and Information Law, Centre for Commercial Law Studies Queen Mary University of London, UK

Christopher Millard is Professor of Privacy and Information Law and head of the Cloud Legal Project in the Centre for Commercial Law Studies, Queen Mary University of London. He is also co-director of the Microsoft Cloud Computing Research Centre and is Senior Counsel to the law firm Bristows. He has over 40 years of experience in the technology law field, in both academia and legal practice. He is Editor and Co-Author of Cloud Computing Law (Oxford University Press) and is a founding editor of the International Journal of Law and IT and of International Data Privacy Law. Christopher is a Fellow and former Chair of the Society for Computers & Law, a past-President of the International Federation of Computer Law Associations, and a past-Chair of the Technology Law Committee of the International Bar Association. A selection of his papers is available for free download from SSRN.

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Karolina Mojzesowicz

Deputy Head, Data Protection Unit, European Commission

Karolina Mojzesowicz is the Deputy Head of Unit of the unit responsible for data protection at the European Commission (DG Justice and Consumers). She represented the Commission in the interinstitutional negotiations with Parliament and Council on the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). She is now responsible for its implementation in the EU and for the streamlining and ensuring coherence of provisions concerning processing of personal data in all legislation within the EU’s Digital Strategy. Mrs Mojzesowicz previously served for over 10 years as a member of the European Commission's Legal Service, focusing on EU Competition law and International Trade law. In that capacity, she represented the Commission in over 80 cases before the European Courts and before the WTO panels and Appellate Body. Mrs Mojzesowicz studied law in Poland, the Netherlands and Germany, where she obtained her PhD in 2001.

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Rosie Nance

Senior Knowledge Lawyer, Norton Rose Fulbright, UK

Rosie curates AI, data, and data protection knowhow for NRF’s clients and team members. She is passionate about finding solutions that work for businesses to comply with novel and complex laws.

Rosie’s previous experience includes advising in-house on data protection and the roll-out of new technologies. Prior to that, she advised clients across sectors on global privacy compliance projects, complex data protection queries, and IT contracts.

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Sophie Nerbonne

Director for economic co-regulation, CNIL, France

Graduated from the Paris Institute of Political Studies (Sciences Po) and Law from Panthéon-Assas (Paris II), Sophie started as a legal officer in the global restauration firm SODEXHO before joining the CNIL as a legal officer for financial services. She became Co-Director of Legal Affairs, Technical Experts and International Affairs at the CNIL. She followed very closely European and International issues and events during the CNIL’s role as Chair of the Article 29 Working Party before 2010. Appointed as a professional expert by the European Commission for credit history files, she is a well-known expert in economic professional circles. She launched the Directorate of the Department for Compliance in 2014, reflecting the orientation of the CNIL’s structure to be a regulator more involved in accompanying professionals with a large line of regulatory tools.

Since the application of GDPR, she is dedicated to the strategy of economic co regulation and gives lectures at the CNAM, universities of Paris Descartes and Paris II Pantheon Sorbonne and Ecole doctrinale de la Sorbonne.

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Dr Nora Ni Loideain

Director and Senior Lecturer in Law, Information Law & Policy Centre, School of Advanced Study, University of London, UK

Dr Nora Ni Loideain is Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) in Law and Director of the Information Law & Policy Centre at the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, University of London. Her research focuses on EU law, European human rights law, and technology regulation, particularly within the contexts of privacy and data protection. She has published on topics including AI Digital Assistants, health data, facial recognition, the Internet of Things, smart cities, and cross-border transfers. With her work being cited by leading institutions including the BBC, the United Nations, and the UK House of Lords.

Nora has recently been appointed to Editor-in-Chief of leading law journal International Data Privacy Law. She consults on the use of AI and emerging technologies for the Alan Turing Institute. In 2019, she was appointed to the UK Home Office Biometrics and Forensics Ethics Group (BFEG). This group provides independent expert advice on the ethics and law underpinning biometrics and forensics policy development for public security and policing in the UK.

Previously, she has held lecturing positions at King’s College London and the University of Cambridge. Prior to her academic career, Nora was a Legal and Policy Officer for the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions of Ireland and clerked for the Irish Supreme Court. Nora holds BA, LLB, LLM (Public Law) degrees from the National University of Ireland, Galway and a PhD in law from the University of Cambridge.

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Pablo Palazzi

Partner, Allende & Brea, and Law Professor, University of San Andres, Argentina

Pablo's practice focuses on technology transactions, intellectual property issues, Internet and technology law, data protection, cyber security and computer crime, domain name registration, trademarks and patents, and fintech-related matters. The clients he advises include internet companies, social networks, AI companies, online payment systems, electronic wallets, cryptocurrency exchanges, banks, Fintech, Insurtech, and HealthTech companies, commercial reporting firms, personal data brokers, hardware and software development companies, and online stores.

He has been named as a leading professional in Intellectual Property Law by internationally recognized publications such as Chambers & Partners Latin America, The Legal 500 Latin America and Latin Lawyer 250. In the field of personal data, he is recognized in Who’s Who Legal Data, Global Data Review, and by the Latin America Corporate Counsel Association. He was the first Latin American lawyer to receive the Vanguard Award from the IAPP in 2022.

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Rocco Panetta

Managing Partner, Panetta Consulting, Italy

Rocco Panetta, Attorney at Law admitted to the Italian Highest Courts, founding and chairman of Panetta Consulting Group, is an internationally renowned technology, data, AI and environmental lawyer, as well as a certified privacy professional.

IAPP Country Leader for Italy and until 2022 board member of IAPP and former ethics expert of European Research Council Executive Agency.

Counsel of the Italian Government on the telecom Ultra Broadband strategy 2014-2016, Rocco has previously been a top-level officer at the Garante (2001-2008) heading one of its legal departments. His tasks and duties included, among others, supervising and dealing with marketing, public licensed operators and international data transfers. While at the Authority he has been Italy’s representative at the Commission’s Article 29 Working Party, and worked on BCRs, SCCs, SH, APIS/PNR, IMI.

Rocco also served both as Secretary General and Commissioner of the Italian Commission on Environmental Impact Assessment from 2007 to 2012.

He has authored and edited more than 200 publications, including books, articles and collections. Throughout the years, Rocco has been ranked amongst leading lawyers by Chambers Europe, Legal500, TopLegal. In 2019-2024 he was awarded Best Privacy Lawyer of the Year at Legalcommunity’s IP&TMT Awards. In 2020 Rocco Panetta was recognized among the Who’s Who Legal as Leaders in several categories including: Leading individuals; Thought Leaders – Data Privacy & Protection; Global Leaders in Data Privacy & Protection, Data Security e Telecoms & Media. In 2023 Rocco was listed amongs the 100 Best Italian professionals by Forbes and the newspaper Repubblica mentioned Rocco among the 500 people to watch in the AI market in 2024.

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Ellis Parry

Director, Data Privacy Compliance Solutions, UK

Ellis Parry set up and has run his own legal consulting firm since 2021, he specialises in information law, corporate governance programmes and the practical application within corporate social responsibility programmes of the emerging field of data ethics. Prior to Data Privacy Compliance Solutions Ltd, Ellis was appointed as the Information Commissioner’s first Data Ethics Adviser, responsible for articulating the regulator’s view of the interplay between the inherently ethical principles of the GDPR and data ethics.

Before the Information Commissioner’s Office, Ellis was the Global Lead for Data Privacy at BP, responsible for maintaining its personal data international transfer mechanism (Binding Corporate Rules) and designing its GDPR global compliance programme. Prior to BP Ellis was also Global Privacy Counsel at AstraZeneca where negotiating the relationship between medical research ethics and the data protection principles was a regular and constant feature of his practice.

Ellis’ experience encompasses all aspects of information rights law with a particular focus and interest on lawful and ethical collection particularly in the medical research sector, transfer and sharing of data where the deployment of AI and machine learning can give rise to some of the greatest risks and benefits to society. Ellis is a solicitor with 23 years' PQE, an MBA and is a contributor to Sweet & Maxwell's "Data Protection Law & Practice" 4th and 5th ed. as well as its standalone guide to the GDPR and the Sweet and Maxwell “Encyclopedia of Data Protection and Privacy”.

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Reena Patel

Head of Data Legal, EMEA, UBS, UK

Reena is the Head of Data Legal, EMEA at UBS, where she has been for just under 2 years. Her team support on all things Data in the EMEA region and AI related globally.

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Victoria Pérez Riu

Global Lead Counsel Data Privacy & AI, Takeda, UK

Victoria has led the Privacy function at two top global pharmaceutical companies, and she is currently working as Lead Counsel Data Privacy & AI for Takeda. She is an international lawyer with multiple Privacy qualifications. While she feels passionate about data protection, she has an eclectic background, having worked in both the public and private sectors, including the European Commission and in the Banking, Chemical and Pharmaceutical industries.

Victoria has a keen interest in shaping policies and regulations and interacting with regulators and policy makers around the world. She is currently a Co-Chair at the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations, a board member of the International Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Privacy Consortium, she is supporting two European IMI projects, and a regular collaborator with MRCT Centre of Brigham & Women’s Hospital & Harvard. She holds an honours degree in Law, a master’s degree in European Studies and International Law, and multiple privacy and business-related certifications. Victoria is a regular contributor to in-house and external publications and events.

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Giles Pratt

Partner, Freshfields, UK

Giles heads the IP and technology group at Freshfields and leads its London data practice. He advises on the full range of legal issues relating to data and cyber security, including navigating data issues in M&A, data governance, crisis management and IP rights in data. Giles is a regular adviser on international data privacy breaches and investigations, and frequently speaks on data issues, including at Privacy Law & Business’ annual conferences and at various tech conferences. He is a member of the City of London Law Society Data Law Committee and edits the Global Data Review Handbook.

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Michelle Ramsden

Senior Counsel, Office of Privacy and Civil Liberties, Department of Justice, USA

Michelle Ramsden is a Senior Counsel in the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Privacy and Civil Liberties. She has been with OPCL since 2018 and handles a range of matters, including component oversight and privacy training, victim and witness privacy protections, and domestic and international privacy legislation. Previously, she was a Presidential Management Fellow and Privacy Compliance Specialist at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, where she served as the privacy lead for Homeland Security Investigations. Michelle also detailed as a Policy Advisor in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties in 2016. Prior to federal service, she provided pro bono representation to Atlanta-area military veterans seeking disability benefits and worked in both graduate and special education. She is a graduate of Emory University School of Law and a member of the State Bar of Georgia.

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Tom Reynolds

Chief Economist, Information Commissioner’s Office, UK

Tom is an economist specialising in data protection and privacy issues. He has more than 15 years of experience in regulatory and competition economics, primarily in digital markets and telecommunications.

He leads the ICO’s economic functions and oversees economic analysis across the full range of ICO activities, including consideration of policy impacts, research into the value of privacy and input to investigations, enforcement and litigation.

In a recent Privacy Laws & Business article he introduced a data protection and privacy audience to some foundational economic ideas and applied them in the context of data protection.

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Thomas Salas

AI/ML Governance Lead, Verily, USA

 

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Sabrina Salhi

Chief Privacy Officer and DPO (UK & EU), Marsh McLennan, UK

Sabrina is responsible for overseeing the development, implementation and ongoing maintenance of the MMC data protection compliance programme to meet complex and evolving regulatory and legal requirements.

Prior to this role, Sabrina worked as a Privacy & Cybersecurity Associate at Hogan Lovells, where she also trained and qualified as a lawyer. As part of her role, she advised multinational organisations from a variety of sectors including financial services, retail and technology on complex matters regarding data protection compliance and on personal data breach response.

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Guido Scorza

Commissioner, The Garante, Italy

 

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Cassie Smith

Head of Legal, Trust & Ethics, Health Data Research UK, UK

Cassie is Head of Legal, Trust & Ethics at HDR UK, the national Institute for health data science. Cassie’s work focuses on the development of innovative and streamlined data governance models to enable trustworthy access to health and health-relevant data sets for life-changing research across the four nations of the UK and internationally. Her work spans the legal, governance and ethical considerations relating to the use of data for research. She leads initiatives to involve members of the public and patients in how their data is used, including co-creating governance and contracting models for data access with public contributors. Cassie has a particular focus on the role of privacy enhancing technologies, including Trusted Research Environments (TREs), in enabling secure access to pseudonymised health data sets in a way that builds public trust and confidence in the use of their data for research.

Prior to joining HDR UK, Cassie was Senior Legal Counsel at Amazon, where she led compliance initiatives across the UK and European business. Cassie holds a Master’s Degree in Chemistry (MChem) from Oxford University, a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) from The College of Law and a Postgraduate Diploma in Intellectual Property Law and Practice from Oxford University.

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Geoff Smith

Visiting Professor for Digital Ethics and Trust, Loughborough University, UK

Geoff, VP Trust & Digital Ethics at Quaylogic, is a strategist, non-executive director and advisor focused on human rights and cultural transformation in emerging data platforms and intelligent machine technologies. For more than 30 years he has led commercially focused data privacy and empowerment functions; developing, operating and transforming data systems and culture. He is a Visiting Professor at Loughborough University where he lectures and researches on topics such as Digital Ethics and Trust Economies, Innovation, Leadership and Empowerment Technology. An advocate for sustainable development he is an ethical advisor on the UK Government National Digital Twin Program and member of the working group for digital decarbonization.

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Dr Mira Suleimenova

Director of Compliance and Legal, JENTIS, Austria

Mira Suleimenova is an expert in international law and data protection with 15 years of experience in the legal industry. Before her role at JENTIS, she advised startups on implementing data protection into their products and technologies. Within JENTIS, Mira is responsible for all legal matters, as well as for compliance with data protection laws and the legal strategy for JENTIS as a Privacy Enhancing Technology

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John Timmons

Partner, White & Case, UK

John advises on all aspects of UK and EU privacy, data protection and cybersecurity law. Key elements of his role include advising clients on general data protection compliance and providing specific advice on international data transfer solutions, compliance with local privacy and cyber security laws, information governance, e-privacy and direct marketing issues and online behavioural / targeted advertising strategies. John has a detailed knowledge of the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the UK Data Protection Act 2018 and associated privacy and cyber security legislation.

John has significant experience working with a wide range of clients in the EU, the US and Asia. John has experience of advising businesses from within, having been seconded to a national media company and a leading global technology business. John has presented to a leading cyber security forum and financial institutions on data protection and privacy matters.

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Heikki Tolvanen

Co-founder and Chief Legal Engineer, PrivacyDesigner, Finland

 

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Eduardo Ustaran

Partner, Hogan Lovells, UK

Global co-head of the Hogan Lovells Privacy and Cybersecurity practice Eduardo Ustaran is widely recognized as one of the world's leading privacy and data protection lawyers and thought leaders. With over 25 years of experience, Eduardo advises multinationals and governments around the world on the adoption of privacy and cybersecurity strategies and policies. Eduardo has been involved in the development of the EU data protection framework and was listed by Politico as the most prepared individual in its 'GDPR power matrix'.

Based in London, Eduardo leads a highly dedicated team advising on all aspects of data protection law – from strategic issues related to the latest technological developments such as artificial intelligence and connected devices to the implementation of global privacy compliance programs and mechanisms to legitimize international data flows.

Eduardo is the author of The Future of Privacy (DataGuidance, 2013), a ground-breaking book where he anticipates the key elements that organizations and privacy professionals will need to tackle to comply with the regulatory framework of the future.

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Danielle van der Merwe

Counsel, Data Privacy and Cybersecurity, Latham & Watkins, UK

Danielle van der Merwe advises multinational and UK clients on a range of data privacy and cybersecurity matters. Drawing on a decade of experience, she counsels a variety of global companies, leading financial institutions, and major funds on their most complex and sensitive data privacy issues. Ms. van der Merwe brings particular experience handling cross-border matters arising from product developments, transactions, and investments, including large-scale GDPR compliance reviews. She also delivers sophisticated insight on privacy issues in connection with white collar investigations, both in the UK and internationally. Her practice includes advising on:

• Complex data transfer solutions (including transfers in light of the Schrems II ruling)
• Sensitive internal and external investigations
• Strategic management of data breach incidents and regulatory inquiries
• Product counselling
• Data subject rights requests
• Online advertising, profiling, and marketing strategies
• Data sharing arrangements
• Training programs
• M&A transactions

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Kristof Van Quathem

Of counsel, Covington & Burling, Belgium

Kristof Van Quathem advises clients on information technology matters and policy, with a focus on data protection, cybercrime and various EU data-related initiatives, such as the Data Act, the AI Act and EHDS.

Kristof has been specializing in this area for over twenty years and developed particular experience in the life science and information technology sectors. He counsels clients on government affairs strategies concerning EU lawmaking and their compliance with applicable regulatory frameworks, and has represented clients in non-contentious and contentious matters before data protection authorities, national courts and the Court of the Justice of the EU.

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Sheena Varma

Chief Privacy Officer, Vice President/Senior Counsel & Risk & Compliance, American Express Global Business Travel, UK

Sheena Varma is the Chief Privacy Officer, Vice President/Senior Counsel & Risk & Compliance Officer for American Express Global Business Travel (Amex GBT). She is responsible for privacy matters globally, and legal and compliance matters in EMEA and APAC.

Sheena started her career in private practice in the City, as a Corporate and Commercial lawyer, later moving in-house to the financial services sector.

She transitioned to the world of travel in 2014, when American Express spun off its B2B travel, meetings and expense management services division, creating Amex GBT.

Sheena enjoys travelling in her spare time, spending time with her family and moonlighting as part time chauffeur to her 11-year-old daughter!

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Eve-Christie Vermynck

Counsel - IP and Technology, Privacy and Cybersecurity, Skadden, UK

Eve-Christie Vermynck focuses her practice on intellectual property, technology, data protection and cybersecurity matters in Europe and abroad. Qualified in the U.S., the U.K. and France, she has extensive experience advising clients on the implementation of international projects while utilizing a risk-based approach. She is a member of The City of London Law Society’s Data Law and AI committees. She counsels clients on matters involving a wide range of technologies, including AI and related governance, Web3, digital assets, blockchain, smart contracts, fintech and biotech. She advises on technology transfer deals, cloud contracts, complex intellectual property licensing arrangements, enterprise-wide AI and compliance strategies, as well as data privacy compliance assessments and programs under European data protection laws, including in the context of cross-border regulatory and litigation proceedings. She also regularly assists clients on cyber preparedness, crisis management and cyber incident responses in compliance with European data protection and cybersecurity law requirements.

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Patricia Vidal Martínez

Partner, Uría Menéndez, Spain

Patricia Vidal joined Uría Menéndez in 1996 and she is a partner of the firm since 2015. Her practice mainly refers to EU law and EU and Spanish Competition Law, with special focus in competition litigation before the Spanish and the EU courts. She has wide experience in merger control (including multijurisdictional filings) and national and international cartel cases and leniency programs, as well as international agreements (purchasing/selling strategic alliances and state aid issues. More prominently in the last years she has specialised in antitrust damage claim litigation in Spain. Patricia is a regular lecturer on EU and Competition Law in several universities and institutions and has written several articles and books on Competition Law.

She is the Chairman of the Spanish Association for the Defence of Competition.”

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Dr Ian Walden

Professor of Information and Communications Law, Professor of Information and Communications Law, Queen Mary, University of London, UK

Dr Ian Walden is Professor of Information and Communications Law and Director of the Centre for Commercial Law Studies, Queen Mary, University of London. His publications include Computer Crimes and Digital Investigations (2nd ed., 2016) and Telecommunications Law and Regulation (5th ed., 2018).

Ian was a Board Member and Trustee of the Internet Watch Foundation (2004-09); the Press Complaints Commission (2009-14); a member of the RUSI Independent Surveillance Review (2014-15); a member of the Code Adjudication Panel at the Phone-paid Services Authority (2016-21); a member of the European Commission Expert Group to support the application of the GDPR (2017-21), and is a Non-Executive Board Member of the Jersey Competition Regulatory Authority (2020- ).

Ian is a solicitor and Of Counsel to Baker McKenzie. Ian is a principal investigator on the Cloud Legal Project and co-author of Cloud Computing Law (2nd ed., 2021).

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Alexander White

Privacy Commissioner, Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Bermuda

Mr. White is a lawyer qualified to practice law in the United States and a former US federal privacy adviser and IAPP Advisory Board member, with experience working in the insurance industry and managing a state government's privacy program.

He holds a variety of privacy, legal, cybersecurity, and risk management qualifications and is a two-time graduate of the University of Georgia (US), with further coursework and study with the Harvard Kennedy School, City University (London) Law School, Law Society of Ireland, Vrije Universiteit Brussels, Tsinghua University School of Law (Beijing), and Fudan University School of Law (Shanghai).

Mr. White is the first Privacy Commissioner for Bermuda, appointed in 2020 and charged with establishing The Office of the Privacy Commissioner under the Personal Information Protection Act 2016 (PIPA). In June 2023 it was announced by the Hon. Minister Vance Campbell that PIPA would come into full effect on 1st January 2025.

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Wojciech Wiewiorwski

European Data Protection Supervisor, European Data Protection Supervisor

Wojciech Wiewiórowski graduated from the Faculty of Law and Administration of the University of Gdańsk in 1995, and in 2000 he was awarded the academic degree of Doctor in constitutional law. After graduation he was editor and then publisher in legal publishing houses. In 2002 he began to work as lecturer at Gdańsk College of Administration, and since 2003 he was assistant professor and head of Legal IT Department at the Faculty of Law and Administration of the University of Gdańsk, with which he has been associated since 1995. Since 2006 he has been working for public administration. He was among others adviser in the field of e-government and information society for the Minister of Interior and Administration, as well as Vice-president of the Regulatory Commission of the Polish Autocephalous Orthodox Church. In 2008 he took over the post of the Director of the Informatisation Department at the Ministry of Interior and Administration. He also represented Poland in committee on Interoperability Solutions for European Public Administrations (the ISA Committee) assisting the European Commission. He was also the member of the Archives Council to the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage. He is a member of the Polish Association for European Law. In 2010 he was elected by Polish Parliament for the post of the Inspector General for the Protection of Personal Data (Polish Data Protection Commissioner) which he served by November 2014 being re-elected for the second term in 2014. Vice Chairman of the Working Party Art. 29 since February till November 2014. The author of numerous studies, publications and lectures in the field of personal data protection, IT law, e-government and legal informatics. His areas of scientific activity include first of all Polish and European IT law, processing and security of information, legal information retrieval systems, informatisation of public administration, electronic signature and application of semantic web and legal ontologies in legal information processing.

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Denise Wong

Deputy Commissioner, Personal Data Protection Commission, Singapore

As Deputy Commissioner of the PDPC, Denise oversees the administration and enforcement of the Personal Data Protection Act (2012). Her key responsibilities include managing the formulation and implementation of policies relating to the protection of personal data, as well as issuing of enforcement directions for organisational actions.

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Kai Zenner

Head of Office and Digital Policy Adviser for MEP Axel Voss, European Parliament

Kai Zenner is Head of Office and Digital Policy Adviser for MEP Axel Voss (European People’s Party Group) in the European Parliament. Describing himself as a digital enthusiast, he focuses on AI, privacy and the EU’s digital transition. Currently, he is involved in the political negotiations on the AI Act, AI liability directive, eprivacy Regulation and GDPR revision. In his individual capacity, he is pushing for reforms within the European Parliament and for bringing back the Better Regulation agenda to EU policymaking.

Mr Zenner graduated in political science (M.Sc. at University of Edinburgh, B.A. at University of Bremen) and in law (State Exam at University of Munster). Before moving to the European Parliament, he worked as research associate at the European office of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation in Brussels.

He is member of the OECD.AI Network of Experts and of the Expert Group that supports the 'High-Level Advisory Body on AI' of the United Nations. Zenner was awarded best MEP Assistant in 2023 ("APA who has gone above and beyond in his duties") and ranked Place #13 in Politico's Power 40 - class 2023 ("top influencers who are most effectively setting the agenda in politics, public policy and advocacy in Brussels").

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Sébastien Ziegler

President, Privacy Symposium and IoT Forum, and Chair, Europrivacy, Switzerland/Luxembourg

Dr Sébastien Ziegler serves as President of the Europrivacy International Board of Experts, Chair of the Privacy Symposium, President of the International Internet of Things Forum (IoT Forum), and as Rapporteur on Emerging Technologies at the ITU (SG20). Sébastien has a PhD in Information Systems. He graduated in International Relations at the Graduate Institute of International Studies, followed by a Master in Environment, a MBA in international administration (HEC Geneva), and complementary executive courses at Harvard Business School in Boston, Stanford University, UC Berkeley and EPFL. Founder of several organisations and companies, he is actively involved in research, innovation and international cooperation.

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