Swiss-U.S. Privacy Shield No Longer Adequate for Data Transfers

Sep 28, 2020

Reading Time : 1 min

By: Natasha G. Kohne, Rebecca Kocsis (Legal Project Analyst)

In a policy paper, the FDPIC determined that the special protection rights for individuals in Switzerland guaranteed through the Swiss-U.S. Privacy Shield did not provide adequate levels of protection for data being transferred to the U.S. from Switzerland. As a result, the FDPIC has removed language from its list of countries referencing “adequate data protection under certain conditions” for the U.S. Although the FDPIC does not have the authority to completely invalidate the Swiss-U.S. Privacy Shield, companies transferring data from Switzerland to the U.S. may no longer rely on the Swiss-U.S. Privacy Shield.

In its policy paper, the FDPIC clarified the standards regarding alternative data transfers, such as Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) and Binding Corporate Rules (BCRs). The FDPIC concluded that these types of alternative data transfers will require companies to conduct a risk assessment evaluating if the company importing the data is subject to any special access request by local authorities. If the results of the data assessment indicate that there are data protection risks, the companies will possibly need to implement additional safeguards, such as encryption or technical measures, designed to effectively prevent authorities from the destination country from accessing the data.

Going forward, companies that rely on the Swiss-U.S. Privacy Shield will need to immediately reassess their options for data transfers. This continues the trend of heavily scrutinizing data transfers to the United States, established by the CJEU’s decision in Schrems II.

Share This Insight

Previous Entries

Data Dive

September 11,2025

The Department of Defense (DoD) recently published in the Federal Register its long-awaited final rule (the Rule) amending the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) to formally implement the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) program. The Rule, effective November 10, 2025, will move CMMC from a policy framework into binding contractual obligations for most defense contractors.

...

Read More

Data Dive

September 3, 2025

AI policy for the health and life sciences sector has continued to take shape. Building on recent activity, on July 23, 2025, the White House released its highly-anticipated AI Action Plan, setting forth the Trump Administration’s recommended policy actions to accelerate AI innovation and build American AI infrastructure. This Plan recommends policies that would promote AI adoption, the creation of “AI-ready” scientific datasets and the establishment of real-world AI evaluation systems by and for the health care and life sciences industries.

...

Read More

Data Dive

July 29, 2025

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has upheld a 2024 Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Order that significantly broadens telecommunications carriers’ breach notification obligations. This decision, issued on August 14, 2025, in Ohio Telecom Association v. FCC, mandates that carriers disclose breaches of any customer personally identifiable information (PII), not just customer proprietary network information (CPNI), and applies to both inadvertent and intentional breaches.2

...

Read More

Data Dive

March 3, 2025

On January 16, 2025, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a Final Rule updating the Children’s Online Privacy Protection (COPPA) Rule, significantly expanding compliance obligations for online services that collect, use, or disclose personal information from children under 13.1 The amendments impose new restrictions on targeted advertising, add data security requirements, refine parental consent mechanisms, and introduce additional compliance measures.

...

Read More

Data Dive

February 21, 2025

On January 8, 2025, the DOJ published a final rule prohibiting and restricting certain transactions that could allow persons from countries of concern, such as China, access to bulk sensitive personal data of U.S. citizens or to U.S. government-related data (regardless of volume).

...

Read More

Data Dive

January 22, 2025

On January 17, 2025, days before the inauguration, former President Joe Biden issued an executive order titled Strengthening and Promoting Innovation in the Nation's Cybersecurity (EO 14144). Building on previous efforts, including Executive Order 14028, this directive seeks to bolster cybersecurity across federal systems, supply chains and critical infrastructure from adversarial nations, particularly from the People’s Republic of China (PRC).

...

Read More

Data Dive

January 10, 2025

UPDATE: The California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA) has extended the deadline for submitting public comments from January 14 to February 19, 2025, in response to the recent California wildfires. This extension aims to afford stakeholders additional time to provide comprehensive and detailed feedback, considering the significant challenges posed by the wildfires.

...

Read More

Data Dive

November 25, 2024

Treasury has issued a Final Rule to implement President Biden’s 2023 EO targeting U.S. investments in Chinese companies engaged in certain activities related to semiconductors, quantum computing or AI.

...

Read More

© 2025 Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP. All rights reserved. Attorney advertising. This document is distributed for informational use only; it does not constitute legal advice and should not be used as such. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Akin is the practicing name of Akin Gump LLP, a New York limited liability partnership authorized and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority under number 267321. A list of the partners is available for inspection at Eighth Floor, Ten Bishops Square, London E1 6EG. For more information about Akin Gump LLP, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP and other associated entities under which the Akin Gump network operates worldwide, please see our Legal Notices page.