The EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) will come into
effect on May 25, 2018, replacing the current applicable Data
Protection Directive.
The GDPR is complex and comprehensive and aims to harmonize data
privacy laws across Europe, protect the privacy of EU citizens'
personal information, and regulate the manner in which
organizations in Europe or with European operations handle data
privacy. Below we outline some key provisions of the GDPR that will
impact American companies and the potential challenges they
present.
Wider Scope & Enforcement
The GDPR applies not only to companies located within the EU but
also to organizations located outside the EU if they offer goods or
services to, or monitor the behavior of EU data subjects. For
example, an online retail company that is solely located in the US,
but allows purchases and deliveries to EU citizens, would be
subject to the GDPR.
