The Strength of the U.S. Commercial Privacy Regime

Memorandum to Big Data Study Group

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"The United States commercial privacy regime is arguably the oldest, most robust, well developed and effective in the world. While this statement may be debated in certain quarters, particularly in Europe, it is consistent with the facts. The purpose of this paper is to promote a thoughtful understanding of the U.S. privacy regime, and to help begin a discussion that recognizes some of the advantages of the relatively flexible and non-prescriptive nature of the American system, which counts on enforcement and deterrence more than detailed prohibitions and rules.1 Most important, it is crucial to recognize that the U.S. model of privacy regulation today is in fact comprehensive and capable of identifying and addressing harmful new uses of commercial information...