EU Commission hosts safe data flows conference for “adequate” countries



Today, the European Commission is hosting the first ever high-level meeting on safe data flows. The meeting gathered together Commissioner for Justice, Didier Reynders; EDPB Chair, Anu Talus; and Ministers and heads of the Data Protection Authorities of 15 countries and territories for which the EU has adopted an adequacy decision. The Commission declared on 15 January that all of the existing 11 adequacy decisions would be retained.(1) The other adequate countries are Japan, South Korea, the UK and the United States. PL&B understands that the Commission is in active discussions with Brazil and Mexico about possible future adequacy deals.

Participants at this Roundtable will discuss ways to leverage this network of like-minded partners.

“Building upon the commonalities between their data protection rules, they will also explore possibilities for closer cooperation on the enforcement of these rules, including on guidance, compliance mechanisms and investigations,” the EU Commission said.

Didier Reynders said: “Cross-border data flows are an integral part of our economy and daily lives. We form, together with 15 other countries, the world's broadest networks for safe and free data flows. With the development of Artificial Intelligence and global challenges arising from new technologies, our cooperation to promoting the responsible use of data and trusted data flows is more important than ever. I look forward to discussing these opportunities in the first ever international summit between like-minded partners on privacy.”

Read more detailed analyses of adequacy decisions in PL&B UK and International Reports.

REFERENCE
  1. Andorra, Argentina, Canada, Faroe Islands, Guernsey, the Isle of Man, Israel, Jersey, New Zealand, Switzerland and Uruguay, see PL&B News: EU retains all existing adequacy decisions