A notable development for the fraught issue of cross-border data flows from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Wednesday: After two years of closed-door discussions, the intergovernmental organization has adopted a declaration on government access to data held by private sector entities.
The declaration, which has been adopted by the 38 OECD countries and the European Union, talks about “legitimate government access on the basis of common values” — and identifies seven shared principles (summarized below) which member countries have agreed reflect “commonalities” drawn from their existing laws and practices. The stated aim is to increase clarity about how government agencies can access data.
Member countries adopting the declaration include the U.S., U.K., European Union Member States …
