Article 29 Working Party Issues Important Opinion On EU – US Privacy Shield

On 14 April 2016, the Article 29 Working Party, an independent European advisory body on data protection and privacy comprised of a representative of the national data protection authorities of the European Union Member States, the European Data Protection Supervisor and the European Commission (the "WP29"), issued an opinion on the European Commission's Adequacy Decision on Privacy Shield (the "Opinion"). The Opinion notes that the Privacy Shield regime introduces many welcome improvements and is a "large step forward" for data protection.

However, the Opinion identifies significant concerns with the proposed arrangement. In particular, the Opinion highlights issues regarding the possibility of bulk personal data collection of European citizens by US security agencies and uncertainty over the effectiveness of the powers conferred on the new position of Privacy Shield Ombudsperson.