Above and beyond the digital and legal surface

Privacy Academy Brasil – More than a mere wave, data privacy and data protection came to stay. Article written back in May, 2018

One of these day I read a neo-Kafkaesque tale (a true one, by the way) about people leaving WhatsApp group due to GDPR compliance, or jeopardizing themselves and their business because WA privacy policy isn’t, by now, in full conformity.

And tossed to the wind an interesting question/provocation: how Internet Governance stage will act and react to a “single” regulation from “one” (collective) actor with global repercussions?

In my opinion, the answer is simple, but in practical terms hard to achieve – although inevitable, my guess: a new “Gatesian”, repaginated and updated legal “tide wave”.

Also global, as predicted by the now famous and historic ’95 memo from a young and visionary Bill Gates about Internet role for the (then) future. But no longer solely Technological (think about Privacy by Design) but also and proeminently Legal. Feasible, but not by far, and achievable, for sure.

Let’s take a glimpse at a practical example. (Privacy Academy Brasil)

Since last year, a significant amount of Germany companies are in full compliance with GDPR, and as far as I know, the 1st European and 4th global economy didn’t “break”. Once again, as I coined, “disruptive adaptations” took place instead.

Surely wasn’t a “natural birth” indeed, but a diligently and conscious C-section instead. Since May, 25th 2018 was the inevitable, roll the sleeves and let’s get it done (in German must have a single and enormous word to describe this hypothetical sequence of events, I guess…).

Long story short: they survived. (Privacy Academy Brasil)

And still are the head of the steam train of the EU economy…

This week (May, 29th, 2018), Brazil finally joined the group of countries with a serious privacy and personal data protection legal framework. (Privacy Academy Brasil)

Baby steps, but at the same time an Armstrong’ one, considering our actual political and economic scenarios. In line with our already traditional global state-of-art position in means of Internet Governance instances and regulation (for non-Brazilians, take a peep at CGI and MCI – National Internet Governance Comitee and Civil Rights Framework for the Internet, respectively), our future “privacy law”, strongly inspired by GDPR and, at the same time, suited for ours specificities, like açaí it’s not perfect and please all tastes, but it’s broadly appreciated and highly “nutritional”…

Here and there we´ve been listening heralds spreading that a kind of “global legal racing season” has just begun, in order to ensure legal stability to local markets and avoid dust bitin’ facing global one. To be followed-up.

One’s sometime said that the History repeats itself: the first time as tragedy; the second, as farce.

(Privacy Academy Brasil)

In this case, ’95 and ’18 and beyond maybe for the first time could rewrite this philosophical statement. At least, be a different and new way to interpret an old play.

Let the time, common sense and disruptives adaptations speak from themselves.

Marcilio Braz é advogado, gerente de projetos em TI, professor e fundador da Privacy Academy.

Date of publishing: May 31th, 2018
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https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/above-beyond-digital-legal-sea-surface-marcilio-braz-jr/

Privacy Academy Brasil