The European Court of Justice handed down its Schrems decision invalidating the Safe Harbor mechanism on October 6, 2015. Since then, companies have been looking to the Data Protection Authorities (DPAs) of EU member states to see how the decision would be interpreted and enforced. As many companies know, Germany is a multifaceted data-protection landscape. […]
Privacy & Cyber Regulatory Enforcement
FFIEC Warns of Increase in Cyber Attacks Involving Extortion, Encourages Financial Institutions to Develop Response Programs
Last week, the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) issued a joint statement warning of an “increasing frequency and severity of cyber attacks involving extortion.” The statement warned that criminals have been extorting financial institutions using a variety of tactics, including denial of service attacks, theft of sensitive information, and use of “ransomware,” which is […]
European Commission Releases Communication on Schrems and Safe Harbor 2.0
On November 6, 2015, the European Commission released a widely-anticipated Communication assessing the impact of the judgment of the European Court of Justice (“ECJ”) in the Schrems case (C-362/14), which invalidated the U.S.-EU Safe Harbor framework. Though the Communication is not legally binding, it provides useful guidance to companies on transfers of personal data to the […]
Commission Underlines Commitment to Safe Harbor Discussions
In a keynote speech today before the 37th International conference of Privacy and Data Protection Commissioners in Amsterdam, EU Justice Commissioner Vera Jourová reiterated the commitment of the European Commission to completing discussions with the United States on a replacement framework for the U.S.-EU Safe Habor. Commissioner Jourová noted that, in the wake of the European Court […]
Kim Peretti Presents at FCC Cybersecurity Forum
Kim Peretti, partner and co-chair of Alston & Bird’s Cybersecurity Preparedness & Response Team, was a featured speaker at the Cybersecurity Forum for Independent and Executive Branch Regulators, organized by the Federal Communications Commission and the Federal Reserve Board on October 16. The Forum, which was held at FCC headquarters in Washington, D.C., focused on primary issues […]