EU-Israel data transfer adequacy greenlit again: NGOs call for scrutiny over
red flags
Through an open letter, Access Now, EDRi, and nine human rights organisations
are calling on the European Commission to scrutinise and reconsider its
decision to re-confirm the data transfer adequacy with Israel made on January
15, 2024. Given Israel’s rule of law and human rights track record, its
inclusion in the adequacy review list — designed to allow free transfers of
personal data with non-EU countries that have essentially equivalent data
protection standards — warrants further deliberation.
“When greenlighting the re-confirmation of data transfer adequacy with Israel,
the European Commission has disregarded the human rights alarm bells that have
been ringing since 2011, when the initial adequacy decision was approved,” said
Chiara Manfredini, Policy Associate at Access Now. “The Commission should not
have brushed off Israel’s use of surveillance and interception powers, and the
accusations of genocide in Gaza.”
The European Commission’s review raises red flags about the decision, casting
doubt on Israel’s compliance with the adequacy criteria. Access Now and
partners demand urgent clarification and review on a series of points,
including:
How the current status of rule of law in Israel, especially the threats to
judicial independence and division of powers, ensures an adequate level of data
protection;
How Israel’s privacy and data protection framework is sufficiently aligned
on critical definitions and standards with the General Data Protection
Regulation;
How Israel’s national security legal framework aligns with EU standards on
necessity and proportionality, especially in regards to bulk data powers and
surveillance operations;
How Israel’s data transfers to the occupied Palestinian territories (oPts)
and the Golan Heights — illegally annexed by Israel — aligns with EU rules
regarding transfers to territories not deemed adequate under EU law;
How stakeholder input to the review decision was collected by the European
Commission; and
Why the review did not take into consideration the current war Israel is
waging on Gaza, recognised to plausibly amount to genocide, particularly in
respect to international human rights norms — specific requirement needed to be
assessed to issue an adequacy decision.
“Israel’s current war on Gaza and its digital occupation of Palestine cannot be
dismissed as a trivial footnote by the European Commission,” said Marwa
Fatafta, MENA Policy and Advocacy Director at Access Now. “The indiscriminate
personal data transfers from and to the oPts has been instrumental for building
Israel’s mass surveillance apparatus, including the construction of mass
biometric databases of Palestinians and its possible use for AI generated kill
lists in Gaza. In no way, Israel can be regarded as a data protection haven,
and Access Now urges the Commission to reconsider its decision.”
Access Now, together with EDRi and other human rights organisations, are ready
to engage further and are awaiting the European Commission’s clarifications on
the points raised in this letter and reconsider the decision.
Read the open letter:
https://edri.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Concerns-Regarding-European-Commissions-Reconfirmation-of-Israels-Adequacy-Status-in-the-Recent-Review-of-Adequacy-Decisions-updated-open-letter-April-2024.pdf
Read this media alert via the Access Now website:
https://www.accessnow.org/press-release/eu-israel-data-transfer/
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