Written By ESR News Blog Editor Thomas Ahearn
Employment Screening Resources® (ESR) – a global provider of background checks and a strategic choice for businesses needing accurate and actionable information when hiring – has received notification from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration (ITA) that ESR’s self-certification of adherence to the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework is approved and effective as of August 12, 2016.
“ESR’s commitment to the privacy and the security of the information that we handle when performing due diligence background checks is foremost in our minds,” said Brad Landin, ESR president and chief compliance officer. “The acceptance of ESR’s day one application to the Department of Commerce to self-certify our adherence to the new Privacy Shield Framework is a demonstration of that obligation.”
The EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework was designed by the Department of Commerce and European Commission to provide companies that transfer personal data from the European Union (EU) to the United States (U.S.) with a mechanism to comply with EU data protection requirements in support of transatlantic commerce. The EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework officially launched on August 1, 2016.
The EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework includes seven commonly recognized privacy principles combined with 16 equally binding supplemental principles that explain and augment the first seven principles. The 23 Privacy Shield Principles lay out requirements for the use of personal data received from the EU by participating organizations. These Principles are available at www.privacyshield.gov/EU-US-Framework.
An organization seeking assurance of the benefits of the Privacy Shield must self-certify annually to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration (ITA) that it adheres to the Privacy Shield Principles in order to remain on the Privacy Shield List. A current list of companies that have self-certified with the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework is available at www.privacyshield.gov/list.
Although the decision to join Privacy Shield is voluntary, the public commitment by an organization to comply with Privacy Shield Principles through self-certification is enforceable under U.S. law by either the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) or the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). The official EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework website is now available online at www.privacyshield.gov.
The EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework replaces a previous international agreement called “Safe Harbor” that was invalidated by a European Court of Justice ruling on October 6, 2015, a decision that resulted from the case of Maximillian Schrems v. Data Protection Commissioner where an Austrian citizen lodged a privacy complaint about his data being transferred to servers in the U.S. for processing.
About Employment Screening Resources (ESR)
Employment Screening Resources® (ESR), a strategic choice for businesses needing accurate and actionable information when hiring, is accredited by the National Association of Professional Background Screeners (NAPBS®) and completes an annual SOC 2® (SSAE 16) Audit that confirms ESR meets high standards for protecting consumer information. To learn more, visit www.esrcheck.com.
NOTE: Employment Screening Resources® (ESR) does not provide or offer legal services or legal advice of any kind or nature. Any information on this website is for educational purposes only.
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