Google calls for a secure ‘data transfer framework’ between the US and EU

Google is calling on lawmakers in the US and Europe to establish new rules for a secure data transfer framework.

Kent Walker, President of Global Affairs and Chief Legal Officer at Google, published a blog post on Wednesday about the current data framework that is causing issues between the US and the European Union.

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) went into effect in 2018 as a data privacy law to provide more privacy for citizens, deliver a better understanding of their rights when handing over personal data, and encourage organizations to take more precautions when handling information.

Under the terms of the GDPR, organizations must ensure that personal data is gathered legally and under strict conditions. In addition, those who collect and manage data must protect it from misuse or exploitation and respect the rights of data owners — or else face penalties.

The issues between US tech companies and the GDPR have been ongoing. Last week, the Austrian Data Protection Authority (DSB) decided that a local Austrian website breached the GDPR by using Google Analytics. The DSB said that Google Analytics did not provide an adequate level of protection for users’ data.

This isn’t the first time Google has been in hot water over the GDPR. In 2019, the French data protection authority, CNIL, issued a fine to Google. CNIL alleged that the tech giant was breaking the rules around transparency when processing people’s data for advertising purposes.

Google’s current stance is clear: It wants more transparency between the US and the EU in regards to the GDPR. “A durable framework — one that provides stability for companies offering valuable services in Europe — will help everyone, at a critical moment for our economies,” Walker wrote. 

Walker warned that if a framework is not created and data flows become blocked, it would “highlight the lack of legal stability for international data flows facing the entire European and American business ecosystem.”