BBB National Programs Issues Statement on European Court of Justice Decision 'Schrems II'

For Immediate Release 

Arlington, VA – July 16, 2020 – “Today, a decision by the European Court of Justice in Case C-311/18 has invalidated the adequacy decision authorizing the Privacy Shield as a mechanism for transfers between the European Union and the United States.    

The U.S. Department of Commerce has issued the following statement in response to the decision: 

“The Department of Commerce will continue to administer the Privacy Shield program, including processing submissions for self-certification and re-certification to the Privacy Shield Frameworks and maintaining the Privacy Shield List. Today’s decision does not relieve participating organizations of their Privacy Shield obligations.”   

In accordance with this guidance, BBB EU Privacy Shield will continue to operate as an independent dispute resolution mechanism in support of the Privacy Shield Frameworks to ensure that our participating businesses can meet their obligations. The program remains available and we will continue to provide certification and compliance assistance.    

The BBB EU Privacy Shield team will continue to analyze the implications of the decision and will be engaging with the relevant authorities as the situation continues to develop.”