STRICT EUROPEAN PRIVACY LAW PUTS PRESSURE ON US
Issue: Privacy

On October 25, the European Union's Data Protection Directive comes into effect. Based on the notion that privacy is a fundamental human right, it establishes a common minimum standard of data privacy protection in Europe. "The directive has raised the visibility of privacy law in the U.S.," said Peter P. Swire, a law professor at Ohio State University. "Some of the least defensible corporate practices in the U.S. are coming under pressure," Prof Swire said, noting that in recent months the Federal Trade Commission has worked hard to protect children's privacy on the Internet and an increasing number of Web sites in the United States have posted privacy policies. "I don't think the timing is a coincidence." The European law requires that citizens be told what their personal data will be used for, have access to data about themselves in companies' files, have the ability to correct false information and be given notice and the opportunity to opt out before personal data is transferred to a third party. "The fact is, we have a very strong tradition of privacy protection," said Marc Rotenberg, director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center,. "What we don't have are adequate techniques for enforcement, and we don't have a coherent approach to private sector protection-we have a patchwork quilt of laws. I think the E.U. directive is a reminder that we have more work to do in the U.S. to protect privacy."

[SOURCE: New York Times (CyberTimes), AUTHOR: Carl Kaplan]


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