Taiwan will not be European regulators primary target when it comes to enforcing the GDPR.
The News Lens
Date: 2018/05/24
By: Timothy Ferry, Taiwan Business TOPICS Magazine
Photo Credit：Corbis/達志影像
The European Union (EU)’s new data protection regime, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), will come into force on May 25, with huge implications for how global businesses, including those in Taiwan, handle personal data.
The GDPR, which succeeds the Data Protection Directive of 1995, aims to harmonize data-protection regulations across the EU. But the sweeping guidelines apply to any organization or business that has even the slightest connection with the EU, not just those located within its territory. It will apply not only to firms that market, sell, or otherwise trade with Europe, but also to those that hire Europeans.
Violating the restrictions could prove costly, with fines reaching as high as 20 million euros (US$23.5 million) or 4 percent of total global revenues, whichever is higher.
John Eastwood, a partner with the Taipei law firm Eiger, describes the European approach as “a massive tightening of the rules on data protection.” Is Taiwan ready for engagement with the EU in the GDPR era? [FULL STORY]
