European Data Privacy Law and Online Business

EU data protection law is of great practical relevance for any company doing business in today's global information economy. This book provides a detailed and practical exposition of European data protection law in the context of the issues that arise in electronic commerce and dataprocessing. It analyses the relevant EU legislation and case-law, and makes particular reference to the EU Data Protection Directives as well as to the national regulatory systems in Europe and the US. Numerous examples are taken from practice, and advice is given on how the relevant data protectionlaws apply to and impact upon business in Europe, the US, and worldwide. Beginning with a detailed description of the legislative process, the book goes on to discuss the basic legal concepts underlying data protection law. It then focuses on how to determine whether EU law applies to particular electronic commerce and online activities, and how to transfer personal dataoutside Europe so as to comply with EU law. The book also includes a comprehensive analysis of how to deal with complex compliance challenges, including notification of databases, processing of employee data, privacy policies, and website compliance and standardization. The key legislative texts needed to deal with complex data protection issues are included in the appendices, along with forms and precedents, contact information for data protection authorities, and links to useful websites. The book is fully up-to-date with the amendments to the TelecommunicationsData Protection Directive passed in the summer of 2002.