U.S. Data Security Rulemaking for Privacy-Violating Foreign Data Agents: The Biden Amendment to the Obama Data Security Proposal

China, Russia, and North Korea could get US data from a thirdparty in one of the more than 170 countries not on the US government’s list. US data brokers don’t need to do much to assure overseas customers follow security requirements when transferring to the US.

The White House says that it is targeting data companies that collect data like health and financial information, which is more personal data than before. A recent Consumer Reports study found that 48,000 companies sent information to a single user on Facebook.

The order will have few immediate effects, they said. The rulemaking process that the Justice Department is going to start is intended to maps out the White House’s proposal for a data security program. The process affords experts, industry stakeholders, and the public at large an opportunity to chime in prior to the government adopting the proposal.

Biden ordered the Health and Human Services, Defense, and Veterans Affairs to make sure that Americans’ health data can not be transferred via other routes like federal grants.

When reviewing submarine cable licenses the Committee for the Assessment of Foreign Participation in the United States Telecommunications Services Sector would have to consider personal data threats. The Federal Register hasn’t yet published the president’s third order of the year.

Foreign actors aren’t the only concern. The Senator cited a ban on buying location information from data brokers as the reason he called on the government to stop buying that information. The US director of national intelligence said the intel agencies buy information from them that is as detailed as possible.

It’s unclear to what degree such a program would be effective. Notably, it does not extend to a majority of countries where trafficking in Americans’ private data will ostensibly remain legal. The government has the power to restrict countries that are allies of the US but also known to conduct espionage against it, as an example of close US ally Israel.

The types of information that the program will cover include health and financial data, precise geolocation information, and certain sensitive government-related data, officials said. The order will contain several carve-outs for certain financial transactions and activities that are “incidental” to ordinary business operations.

White House officials said the US Attorney General would consult with the heads of the Department of State and Department of Commerce to finalize a list of countries falling under the eye of the program. A tentative list given to reporters during Tuesday’s call, however, included China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia, and Venezuela.

Biden administration officials disclosed the order to reporters in advance during a Zoom call on Tuesday and briefly took questions, but only if they were not named or referred to by job title.