In an interview with the tech site ReCode, President Obama has suggested that European distrust of U.S. tech firms has base motivations. In his description:
We have owned the internet. Our companies have created it, expanded it, perfected it in ways that they can’t compete. And oftentimes what is portrayed as high-minded positions on issues sometimes is just designed to carve out some of their commercial interests.
What exactly is Obama complaining about?
He’s responding to a question about differences between how Europe and the United States deal with privacy. The United States does not have any strong comprehensive regulations covering how the private sector deals with your personal data. Under U.S. law, a few kinds of data (e.g., weirdly, video rental records) are heavily protected, but large categories of personal data get very little protection. If a company promises not to use your data in certain ways and then breaks its promises, the FTC can go after it. But if it doesn’t make any specific promises, or if it reserves the right (as many companies do) to change its mind, there is very little protection.
The European Union, in contrast, has strong and comprehensive laws governing how private businesses can use your data. It is updating these laws to deal with two decades of change on the Internet, with new legislation likely to be forthcoming this year. A recent judgment from the European Court of Justice that people have the right to be forgotten (by getting certain search results removed) has serious implications for Google’s business model. The forthcoming privacy rules are likely to have even more substantial implications.
Read the full piece at The Washington Post.
- Publication Type:Other Writing
- Publication Date:02/17/2015