The European Commission published, on 13 December 2022, its draft adequacy decision for the EU-US Data Privacy Framework ('DPF'), aimed at fostering safe data flows and addressing concerns raised by the Court of Justice of the European Union's ('CJEU') judgment in Data Protection Commissioner v. Facebook Ireland Limited, Maximillian Schrems (C-311/18) ('the Schrems II Case'). 

You can read the full story here.

In response, various privacy authorities, organisations, and stakeholders have issued their reactions to the draft adequacy decision. OneTrust DataGuidance tracks the reactions below.

NOYB

None of your business ('NOYB') released, on 13 December 2022, a statement in which it issued its first reaction to the draft adequacy decision for the DPF, noting that it is currently analysing the decision and recalling that it found the changes introduced to US law by the Executive Order on Enhancing Safeguards for United States Signals Intelligence Activities ('the Executive Order') to appear minimal, among other things.

You can read the full story here.

DoC

The U.S. Department of Commerce ('DoC') released, on 14 December 2022, a statement on the draft adequacy decision for the DPF. In particular, the DoC Secretary, Gina Raimondo, welcomed the draft adequacy decision and highlighted that it represented a critical next step to fully address the Schrems II Case. Lastly, the DoC Secretary stated that "we are closely reviewing the draft decision and look forward to appropriate consideration of the draft by the European Data Protection Board, the European Parliament, and member states".

You can read the press release here.

ITI

The Information Technology Industry Council ('ITI') issued, on 13 December 2022, a statement in which it welcomed the draft adequacy decision for the DPF. More specifically, the ITI's President and CEO, Jason Oxman, provided that "with today's draft decision by the European Commission, businesses, citizens, and government institutions can prepare to move forward with a solid and reliable framework that protects fundamental rights of citizens, provides legal certainty for businesses, and safeguards the continuity of commercial activities involving the movement of data across borders. We encourage EU Member States to work with EU Institutions to adopt the draft adequacy decision and ensure the successful implementation of the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework".

You can read the press release here.

EPIC

The Electronic Privacy Information Center ('EPIC') issued, on 13 December 2022, a statement on the draft adequacy decision for the DPF, noting that it had recently commented on the Executive Order, outlining several areas of concern ahead of a likely challenge at the CJEU.

You can read the full story here.

U.S. Chamber of Commerce

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce released, on 14 December 2022, a statement on the draft adequacy decision for the DPF. In particular, Senior Vice President for Europe, Marjorie Chorlins, welcomed the announcement that the European Commission had adopted a draft adequacy decision for the DPF, noting that the DPF is a critically important step to ensure the economies remain connected. Furthermore, the Chamber of Commerce highlighted that it encourages the European Commission and the Biden Administration to finalise the remaining steps needed to bring the framework into final effect.

You can read the press release here.