With Trump, data transfers to the USA are once again under scrutiny

  • Bitkom warns on European Data Protection Day about new legal uncertainties regarding the Data Privacy Framework 
  • Many German companies rely on data processing abroad

Berlin, 28 January 2025 – Companies transferring data to the US face new legal uncertainties following the inauguration of the new US President, Donald Trump. The digital association Bitkom highlighted this issue on the occasion of today’s European Data Protection Day. The current agreement between the EU and the US, the Data Privacy Framework, is based on commitments made by the US government, specifically through an Executive Order issued by then-President Joe Biden. However, a key oversight body for monitoring the agreement is now in question under the new US administration, as is the Executive Order itself. "Data transfers are essential for the entire economy and the scientific community. The individual case assessments required before the introduction of the Data Privacy Framework placed a significant burden on businesses, especially small and medium-sized enterprises and startups. We must not revert to that situation," says Susanne Dehmel, a member of Bitkom’s executive board. "Nevertheless, companies should already be considering whether and on what legal basis they are currently transferring data to the US." As an alternative to the Data Privacy Framework, companies can also use Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs), pre-formulated by the European Commission, which legally bind both parties to uphold an adequate level of data protection. 

In a Bitkom survey conducted last year, only 45% of companies stated that they had a clear understanding of where their data is being processed. Among those that did, around two-thirds (63%) transferred data abroad for processing, with four in ten (42%) specifically transferring data to the US. The only location mentioned more frequently for data processing was other EU countries (49%). Dehmel adds: "When data transfers and data protection become bargaining chips in political disputes, it burdens the economy just as much as tariffs or a trade war over imports and exports. Both European and US companies would be affected."

Share