U.S. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris meet with (L-R) Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), on February 27, 2024 at the White House in Washington, DC.
Roberto Schmidt | Getty Images
U.S. President Joe Biden will issue an executive order Wednesday meant to safeguard the non-public data of American residents from international locations deemed hostile.
The executive order facilities on the enterprise of promoting individuals’s private info, through which corporations and so-called data brokers gather and commerce data. The Biden Administration is anxious that data brokers and other industrial entities will promote this info to “countries of concern-which have a track record of collecting and misusing data on Americans.”
Lawmakers and intelligence businesses have beforehand expressed concerns that the Chinese Communist Party is amassing a wealth of U.S. data, posing nationwide safety considerations.
The order focusses on particular, sensitive info like genomic data, biometric data, private well being data, geolocation data, monetary data and other sorts of personally identifiable info.
Hostile international locations can use this data “to track Americans (including military service members), pry into their personal lives, and pass that data on to other data brokers and foreign intelligence services,” in accordance to a White House truth sheet.
“The sale of Americans’ data raises significant privacy, counterintelligence, blackmail risks and other national security risks-especially for those in the military or national security community,” the White House stated in a launch on the brand new E.O.
“Countries of concern can also access Americans’ sensitive personal data to collect information on activists, academics, journalists, dissidents, political figures, and members of non-governmental organizations and marginalized communities to intimidate opponents of countries of concern, curb dissent, and limit Americans’ freedom of expression and other civil liberties,” the White House stated.
The executive order will direct the Department of Justice to issue a number of laws meant to defend sensitive data. It may even instruct the Department of Homeland Security and the DOJ “to set high security standards to prevent access by countries of concern to Americans’ data through other commercial means, such as data available via investment, vendor, and employment relationships.”
Additionally, the order directs the Assessment of Foreign Participation within the United States Telecommunications Services Sector “to consider the threats to Americans’ sensitive personal data” after they conduct opinions of submarine cable licenses.
“These actions not only align with the U.S.’ longstanding support for the trusted free flow of data, but also are consistent with U.S.’ commitment to an open Internet with strong and effective protections for individuals’ privacy and measures to preserve governments’ abilities to enforce laws and advance policies in the public interest,” the White House explainer learn.
Last week, the Biden administration introduced an executive order meant to enhance the cybersecurity of U.S. ports. For occasion, authorities officers stated that 80% of port gear referred to as ship-to-shore cranes ports are made in China, and they’re involved that the gear might be compromised and used for surveillance.
Congress has additionally zeroed in on potential privateness dangers posed by the data-broker trade. Last May, a bipartisan group of lawmakers sent letters to over 20 companies like Equifax and Oracle, asking for details about their data-collection-and-distribution strategies.
“American privacy concerns in the data broker industry are not new, and existing laws do not sufficiently protect Americans’ data from misuse,” the letter stated.
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