The new system is seen as the beginning of a new era of multilateral cooperation in promoting reliable global data flows while protecting individual user privacy.
The new system is seen as the beginning of a new era of multilateral cooperation in promoting reliable global data flows while protecting individual user privacy.
Data is the new oil. But unlike the yellow-black liquid mixture, discrete units of information cannot be found in deep-sea wells. Data is more like air. And its movement across borders is facilitated by the Internet and international trade. Governments want to continue their flow while trying to protect the privacy of individuals.
In 1998, members of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), recognizing the importance of Internet-based commerce, developed a framework to facilitate the participation of small businesses in global commerce. Member countries envision a future in which e-commerce will expand business opportunities, reduce costs, increase efficiency and improve quality of life.
While the framework was intended to promote electronic commerce in the Asia Pacific region, it also upheld the core values of the 1980 OECD guidelines on the protection of privacy and the cross-border flow of personal data. It reaffirmed the value of privacy for individuals and the information society.
Since that blueprint was drafted, technology has transformed nearly all industries. Global trade flows have increased as digitization has changed the flow of information between two countries.
This change in global trade prompted APEC members to update their 1998 blueprints. They made two changes, one in 2005 and the other in 2015, to include topics on protecting privacy while maintaining data flow.
Now, the 24-year-old framework has been changed once again as governments explore new rules to govern data flow across borders.
The current participating countries in APEC, the US, Japan, Canada, South Korea, the Philippines, Singapore and Chinese Taipei, have established a Global Cross-Border Privacy Rules (CBPR) Forum. They plan to set up an international certification system for businesses in this sector.
The certification system seeks to find a balance between being globally scalable and protecting the companies and individuals accountable for their data usage from harm and misuse. And it aims to enable further participation from further APEC member states.
The system is seen as the beginning of a new era of multilateral cooperation in promoting reliable global data flows.
“The global CBPR system is an important step toward enabling continuous, reliable data flow between participating jurisdictions,” Keith Enright, Google’s chief privacy officer, said in a blog post.