European Union and the U.S. Complete Data Protection Umbrella Agreement (September 8, 2015) [1]
On September 8, 2015, the European Union and the U.S. finalized negotiations on a data protection “Umbrella Agreement” dealing with high data protection standards for transatlantic law enforcement cooperation. In a statement [3], EU Commissioner Věra Jourová described the Umbrella Agreement as an “important step to strengthen the fundamental right to privacy effectively and to rebuild trust in EU-US data flows,” highlighting that the Agreement will “guarantee a high level of protection of all personal data when transferred between law enforcement authorities across the Atlantic. It will in particular guarantee that all EU citizens have the right to enforce their data protection rights in US courts.” According to this fact sheet [4] published by the European Commission, the Umbrella Agreement will include protections such as a clear limitation of data use, reasonable retention periods, information in case of data security breaches, and judicial redress rights and enforceability. The fact sheet also addresses the instances in which data sharing can occur, stating that “[t]he data transferred between EU and US law enforcement authorities can only be shared for the purpose of preventing, investigating, detecting or prosecuting criminal offences, including terrorism, in the framework of police cooperation and judicial cooperation in criminal matters.”