Transborder Data Flows and Data Privacy Law

Abstract This book examines the history, policies, and future of transborder data flow regulation in the data protection and privacy regulation of over seventy countries and international organizations worldwide. It traces the history of regulation in different regions, beginning with the earliest European laws in the 1970s, through to leading regional and international instruments of the EU, OECD, Council of Europe, APEC, and other bodies. It also considers regulation used in the private sector (such as contractual clauses and binding corporate rules), and the use of technology (such as encryption) to regulate data flows. The legal basis of transborder data flow regulation under EU law, fundamental rights law, and EU law is discussed in light of the challenges posed by the Internet (including phenomena such as cloud computing and online social networks). The book also analyses the interaction between transborder data flow regulation and private international law, including issues of applicable law, jurisdiction, and extraterritoriality, and conflicts between regulation and other areas of law. There is discussion of the state of compliance with regulation and how it is enforced. The book concludes by making recommendations for improvement of the legal frameworks in light of their underlying policies. It includes the English text of all legislative regulations under data protection law from around the world that restrict transborder data flows.