"Since the inception of the Privacy Shield program in 2016, nearly 4,000 companies have made legally enforceable commitments to comply with the Privacy Shield framework. The significant growth of the program last year highlights Privacy Shield's vital importance to transatlantic data protection and commerce," the commission’s statement on the results of the meeting between EU Commissioner Vera Jourova and US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said.
The sides have discussed the decision of US President Donald Trump to nominate a "politically appointed" official from the State Dept. as the Privacy Shield ombudsperson.
"In addition, in the wake of recent privacy incidents involving the personal data of Europeans and Americans, the U.S. and EU reaffirm the need for strong privacy enforcement to protect our citizens and ensure trust in the digital economy. Among other things, the Commerce Department will revoke the certification of companies that do not comply with Privacy Shield's vigorous data protection requirements," the statement read.
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The pact has faced criticism from the public. The Irish High Court on October 3, 2017, ruled that there was an incompatibility of US surveillance practices with EU law and the absence of an effective remedy, including that of the post of Privacy Shield Ombudsman, and would be directing questions to the European Court of Justice to this regard.