Schrems II landmark ruling: our recommendations

On 16 July 2020, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) published its decision in the landmark case Data Protection Commissioner v Facebook Ireland Ltd, Maximilian Schrems and intervening parties, Case C-311/18 (known as the Schrems II case). While the EU-US Privacy Shield (Privacy Shield) has been completely invalidated, the Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) remain valid, but with strict conditions.

Our recent briefing provides a detailed analysis on the judgement, but here are our recommendations on what organisations should consider doing next:

Monitor guidance updates from the European Data Protection Board (EDPB)

Schrems II: The US Perspective and where do we go from here?

By David Kessler (US) and Anna Rudawski (US) on July 21, 2020 Posted in Cybersecurity, Data Transfer, Vendor management and transactions

Schrems II calls into question all transfers of personal information out of the EU that involve export to a country without an adequacy finding. While this affects countries in every region of the world, it does have particular ramifications for the US.

US companies are likely to bear the brunt of this decision. First, because the underlying complaint concerns how Facebook transferred personal data to the US, Schrems II takes particular umbrage with US “mass” surveillance laws, which are unlikely to change in the short term. Second, the US is still the largest economy in the world and information is … Continue Reading

Schrems II landmark ruling: Privacy Shield is invalid, Standard Contractual Clauses are valid but court puts obligations on parties and authorities

By Marcus Evans (UK), Christoph Ritzer (DE) and Janine Regan (UK) on July 16, 2020 Posted in Data breach, Enforcement, General, Regulatory response

The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has today published its decision in the landmark case, known as Schrems II. While Privacy Shield has been completely invalidated, the Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) remain valid, but the court has emphasised obligations on the parties to the SCCs and Data Protection Authorities which have the potential to restrict when they can be used.

Here is a very short first summary:

Privacy Shield is invalid. This is on the basis that the access and use of EU personal data by US authorities are not restricted in a way

Germany’s Federal Supreme Court provisionally confirms Facebook’s use of personal data is alleged abuse of dominant market position

By Christoph Ritzer (DE) and Tim Schaper on July 16, 2020 Posted in Cybersecurity

Facebook’s extensive collection of user-related data must be put on hold in Germany for the time being following a decision of Germany’s Federal Supreme Court on June 23, 2020. In summary proceedings, the Federal Supreme Court overturned an earlier order of the Higher Regional Court of Düsseldorf that – pending the outcome of an appeal by Facebook – had suspended the effect of a prohibition order issued by Germany’s Federal Cartel Office (FCO) in 2019 restricting Facebook’s collection of data. The FCO’s prohibition order will therefore be effective during Facebook’s ongoing appeal.

The case concerns the terms of use that … Continue Reading

Cell phones, robocalls, and text messages – two pronouncements

By David Kessler (US) and Susan Ross (US) on July 7, 2020 Posted in Compliance and risk management, Cybersecurity, Regulatory response

On July 6, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld most of the federal law that prohibits “robocalls” to cell phones but struck down the exception for collection of debts owed to the federal government. (Barr v. American Association of Political Consultants, No. 19–631 (July 6, 2020) (2020 WL 3633780).) Previously, on June 25, a Bureau of the Federal Communications Commission issued some guidance on what constitutes an “autodialer” (or “automatic telephone dialing system“—“ATDS”) relating to that law’s prohibition on text messages. (In re Rules and Regulations Implementing the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991, P2P Alliance Petition … Continue Reading

UPDATE: Registration deadlines for VERBİS extended

By Ekin Inal (TR) and Ecem Naz Boyacıoğlu (TR) on June 26, 2020 Posted in Data breach

Data Protection Report - Norton Rose Fulbright

The deadline for data controllers to register with the Data Protection Authority’s publicly accessible data controller registry, known as VERBİS, has been extended. In its June 23, 2020 decision, the Authority extends the VERBİS registration deadline until September 30, 2020 for the following data controllers:

Turkish data controllers employing more than 50 people annually or whose annual total financial statement exceeds TL 25 million (approx. USD 3.7 million), and

Data controllers not located in Turkey.

With the exception of some exempt classes, all data controllers (individuals as well as legal entities) must register with VERBİS prior to processing any personal … Continue Reading

Schrems II judgement due in July – what this might mean for your outsourcing deal

By Marcus Evans (UK), Lara White (UK) and Janine Regan (UK) on June 17, 2020 Posted in Compliance and risk management

Just when we thought our summers might have been looking a bit dull, it was announced that the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) will be making its final ruling in Case C-311/18, Data Protection Commissioner v Facebook Ireland & Schrems on 16 July 2020. This judgement concerns the legality of the European Commission approved Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) which many organisations rely on to transfer personal data outside of the UK and the European Economic Area (EEA), particularly in relation to outsourcing services.

On 19 December 2019, the Advocate General (… Continue Reading

Singapore’s Public Consultation on proposed changes to the Singapore Personal Data Protection Act

By Wilson Ang (SG), Stella Cramer (SG), Jessica Paulin (SG) and Jeremy Lua (SG) on May 21, 2020 Posted in General

On 14 May 2020, the Singapore Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI) and the Personal Data Protection Commission of Singapore (PDPC) announced a public consultation (the Public Consultation) on the draft Personal Data Protection (Amendment) Bill (the Draft Bill) and related amendments to the Spam Control Act (SCA). The Public Consultation will take place from 14 May 2020 to 28 May 2020.

The Draft Bill is the culmination of a series of consultations between the MCI, PDPC and public and industry stakeholders over the past three years. In this post, we briefly … Continue Reading

Contact tracing apps: A new world for data privacy

By Anna Gamvros (HK) and Steven Hadwin (UK) on May 13, 2020 Posted in General

May 12, 2020

Norton Rose Fulbright today launched its survey analysing regulatory and policy issues applicable to COVID-19 contact tracing and related tracking technology across 18 jurisdictions.

The global survey explores key issues across Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Indonesia, Russia, Poland, Singapore, South Africa, Thailand, The Netherlands, Turkey, UAE, UK and US, including:

How are governments using technology to monitor and control the spread of COVID-19?
What are the major privacy concerns in relation to the utilisation of apps by both governments and private sector organisations?
How will the apps collect data and how is the