"Do Not Send User Information" EU Orders Facebook to Ban Transmission to the US

by Kwon Jaehee

Published 10 Sep.2020 10:56(KST)

Updated 10 Sep.2020 11:17(KST)

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First Action After Invalidating US-EU Data Transfer Agreement 'Privacy Shield'
Facebook Must Establish Separate Data Processing Services Within Europe

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] European Union (EU) regulators have issued a preliminary order to Facebook not to transfer European users' information to the United States, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on the 9th (local time).

According to the report, Ireland's Data Protection Commission, where Facebook's European headquarters is located, issued a preliminary order to Facebook to stop sending data about EU users to the United States and urged a response plan by mid-September.

The Irish authorities plan to review Facebook's response and then request joint approval at the EU member state level.

This is the first action taken since the European Court of Justice (ECJ), the highest court in Europe, invalidated the 'Privacy Shield,' a data transfer agreement between the US and the EU, in July.

The Privacy Shield is an agreement established in 2016 between the US and the EU to protect Europeans' personal information when transferred to the US for commercial purposes. With the ECJ ruling the Privacy Shield invalid, more than 5,000 US companies using it have lost their special access rights to personal data within Europe.

As a result of this measure, Facebook faces a situation where it must either build services to store user information separately within Europe or temporarily suspend services.

Although this measure was taken against Facebook, concerns are growing that similar actions will follow against other US IT companies such as Google, Apple, and Amazon.

Facebook stated, "Online services that rely on data transfers between the US and the EU are now in an uncertain situation," and added, "Consistent rules regarding data are necessary."