New US Executive Order! This one is about data protection

➤ The full text is expected to be out later today. But the press release includes a summary of the content. (Link in the comments.)

➤ What this Executive Order says, based on the press release:

🏢Orders various federal departments to issue regulations and otherwise promote the protection of sensitive data that belongs to Americans and the American government.

🏢Sensitive data includes:

Genomic data, biometric data, personal health data, geolocation data, financial data, and certain kinds of personal identifiers

🏢Protecting this data means:

The focus is on preventing the transfer of this data to “countries of concern – which have a track record of collecting and misusing data on Americans”

➤ Happy insights

😀Broad definition of sensitive data - often people only think of identifying information as something that needs to be protected.

😀Building on existing regulation rather than new regulation - this is the approach the US often takes in AI regulation. We see another instance of it here. Personally, I’m a fan of the approach.

➤ Unhappy insights

😕A narrow interpretation of data protection -

Sensitive data also needs to be protected from many other actors, not in "countries of concern". Big tech is one prominent example. Focusing solely on potential abuse from foreign countries may result in further demonization of these countries, on top of leaving Americans vulnerable. 

➤ What do other people think of this executive order? Join the discussion in the LinkedIn thread