New international privacy law survey
White & Case, a global law firm, has conducted a survey of national privacy laws in 15 commercially prominent jurisdictions around the world, which documents the rapid growth and diverse range of laws and regulations aimed at protecting privacy and controlling the use of data in the information economy. The survey aims to inform business interests about �[the] rising tide of legal and regulatory measures addressing how companies may aggregate and disseminate one of their most valuable commercial assets - business data.� The survey found that all 15 jurisdictions have some form of privacy law in place, and eight of them have active proposals for significant changes to their current laws. In only one jurisdiction - Hong Kong - have the privacy laws remained largely unchanged since 1996. �These survey results reflect the general feeling among consumers that they want more privacy and stronger legal protection of it, coupled with the perception among consumer-oriented companies that their businesses will thrive only if their customers feel secure,� says the lead author of the survey. Full Report (pdf)
White & Case press release
Multinationals Face Rise in Complex Privacy Laws Financial Times, May 3, 2002
EPIC�s Privacy & Human Rights Survey 2001
