U.S. and EU Privacy Policy: Comparison of Regulatory Approaches

While the Internet can be viewed as a global network of networks, many elements of Internet law remain delineated by sovereign nations, creating the potential for regulatory conflict and spillover. In particular, national governments have different views on the regulation of private information, and to whom it should be available. Concerns arise about how personal data and identifiers should be handled on the Internet. The US and EU are each other’s largest trading partners yet follow vastly different approaches in their attempt to regulate personal information and the digital economy. This article explores the cross-border variation in privacy policy in the US and EU and discusses how differences in countries’ values, social norms, and interests account for the variance in regulation. Distinct regulatory approaches and priorities between the US and EU profoundly affect numerous industries in both regions. The article analyzes the example of the passenger name records in the travel industry as a case study in these privacy policy contrasts.

[1]  Andrew M. Odlyzko,et al.  Privacy, economics, and price discrimination on the Internet , 2003, ICEC '03.

[2]  James C. Duff.  ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES COURTS , 2007 .

[3]  H. Varian.  Economic Aspects of Personal Privacy , 2009 .

[4]  Julia M. Fromholz.  The European Union Data Privacy Directive , 2000 .

[5]  Tyler Moore,et al.  The Economics of Information Security , 2006, Science.

[6]  Robert Gellman,et al.  Data privacy law: A study of United States data protection , 1997 .

[7]  Joel R. Reidenberg,et al.  Resolving Conflicting International Data Privacy Rules in Cyberspace , 2000 .

[8]  Andrew M. Odlyzko.  Privacy, Economics, and Price Discrimination on the Internet , 2004, Economics of Information Security.

[9]  H. Varian,et al.  Conditioning Prices on Purchase History , 2005 .

[10]  Timothy Wu.  CYBERSPACE SOVEREIGNTY ?-- THE INTERNET AND THE INTERNATIONAL SYSTEM , 2003 .

[11]  George T. Duncan.  Exploring the Tension Between Privacy and the Social Benefits of Governmental Databases , 2004 .

[12]  J. Rubenfeld.  The Right of Privacy , 1989 .

[13]  P. Hernon.  Protecting privacy in surveillance societies: By David H. Flaherty. Chapel Hill, North Carolina:The University of North Carolina Press, 1989, 483 pages, $45.00. IBSN: 0-8078-1871-2. , 1990 .

[14]  Tim Wu,et al.  Who Controls the Internet , 2006 .

[15]  Carl Hewitt,et al.  ORGs for Scalable, Robust, Privacy-Friendly Client Cloud Computing , 2008, IEEE Internet Computing.

[16]  J. Goldsmith,et al.  Unilateral Regulation of the Internet: A Modest Defence , 2000 .

[17]  S. Wilske,et al.  International Jurisdiction in Cyberspace: Which States May Regulate the Internet? , 1997 .

[18]  Henry Farrell,et al.  Constructing the International Foundations of E-Commerce—The EU-U.S. Safe Harbor Arrangement , 2003, International Organization.

[19]  M. Castells.  The rise of the network society , 1996 .

[20]  Mark Neocleous,et al.  Security, Liberty and the Myth of Balance: Towards a Critique of Security Politics , 2007 .

[21]  Louis D. Brandeis,et al.  The Right to Privacy , 1890 .

[22]  S. Kobrin.  Safe harbours are hard to find: the trans-Atlantic data privacy dispute, territorial jurisdiction and global governance , 2003, Review of International Studies.

[23]  Alessandro Acquisti,et al.  Privacy and Security of Personal Information - Economic Incentives and Technological Solutions , 2004, Economics of Information Security.

[24]  J. Barlow.  A Declaration of the Independence of Cyberspace , 2021, Commonplace.