View from Peter Lancos, CEO
"Welcome to the first of our Global Data Diaries! A fortnightly series where we aim to present you with a roundup of the latest data privacy news and insights from across the global. As you'll see below, 2021 has started off with a bang - the highlight for me being the news that the European Union is making moves to not only seal a data-flow deal with Biden's administration however also with post-Brexit Great Britain. The aim is that moving forward companies will be able to easily move personal data between the EU and the U.K., or the EU and the U.S. Great news for all organisations who rely on sharing sensitive and critical data across those regions as part of their regular business function.
EU Aims to Seal Data-Flow Deals With U.S. and Britain
The European Union has International data-flow high on it’s agenda at the beginning of 2021, as they look to seal deals with both the US and Britain following ongoing high-stakes talks. With the US and the Biden administration, the EU are exploring ways to allow corporate data transfers that will withstand future legal challenges despite U.S. intelligence-gathering practices. Separately, European privacy officials are working toward a June deadline to complete a similar arrangement with U.K. officials to continue data flows after the country left the union last year.
Virginia is about to get a major California-style data privacy law
Virginia is poised to follow in California's footsteps any minute now and become the second state in the country to adopt a comprehensive online data protection law for consumers.
If adopted, the Consumer Data Protection Act would apply to entities of a certain size that do business in Virginia or have users based in Virginia. The bill enjoys broad popular support among state lawmakers; it passed 89-9 in the Virginia House and unanimously (39-0) in the state Senate, and Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam is widely expected to sign it into law without issue in the coming days.
US Treasury: Yellen warns of 'explosion' of cybercrime risk
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has warned of an “explosion of risk” from cyber-criminals as a result of the global pandemic, which has seen an increase in criminal activities online.
Following a US Treasury roundtable, Ms Yellen discussed the rise in new financial technologies which could help fight crime and also reduce inequality.
“We’re living amidst an explosion of risk related to fraud, money laundering, terrorist financing, and data privacy.
“As the pandemic has moved more of life online, crime has moved with it. We’re seeing more – and more sophisticated – cyberattacks aimed at institutions that hold up our society: hospitals, schools, banks and even our government,” she said.