U.S. companies not complying with E.U. Safe Harbor rules.The European Commission European Commission, branch of the governing body of the European Union (EU) invested with executive and some legislative powers. Located in Brussels, Belgium, it was founded in 1967 when the three treaty organizations comprising what was then the European Community says American companies are not complying with the Safe Harbor Safe Harbor 1. A legal provision to reduce or eliminate liability as long as good faith is demonstrated. 2. A form of shark repellent implemented by a target company acquiring a business that is so poorly regulated that the target itself is less attractive. Agreement that it negotiated with the United States in 2001. More than 400 U.S. companies have signed onto the Safe Harbor Agreement indicating that they would provide "adequate" safety for E.U. citizens' personally identifiable information In information security and privacy, personally identifiable information or personally identifying information (PII) is any piece of information which can potentially be used to uniquely identify, contact, or locate a single person. . The working document states that U.S. companies "seem to have difficulties in correctly translating Safe Harbor principles The US Safe Harbor Arrangement is a streamlined process for US companies to comply with EU Directive 95/46/EC on the protection of personal data, developed by the US Department of Commerce in consultation with EU. into data-processing policies." The E.U. privacy directive was passed in 1995 and governs the rules for companies that conduct business in the European Union European Union (EU), name given since the ratification (Nov., 1993) of the Treaty of European Union, or Maastricht Treaty, to the European Community and handle personally identifiable information. The agreement was negotiated between the United States and the European Union as a compromise for American companies that handle sensitive data from European citizens. The U.S. Department of Commerce is responsible for certifying U.S. company compliance. "Most companies, according to what I interpreted from this commission staff working document, tried to avoid compliance in any possible way and exploit loopholes of the Safe Harbor," said Cedric Laurant of the Electronic Privacy Information Center Electronic Privacy Information Center or EPIC is a public interest research group in Washington D.C.. It was established in 1994 to focus public attention on emerging civil liberties issues and to protect privacy, the First Amendment, and constitutional values in the (EPIC). "And although they're ... compliant with the letter of Safe Harbor, they haven't complied with the spirit." The European Commission working report says that U.S. regulatory agencies such as the Department of Commerce and the Federal Trade Commission are being lax in enforcing Safe Harbor. The commission report does not call for ending Safe Harbor but does recommend that U.S. regulators improve their enforcement efforts. |
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