Much has happened with Safe Harbor in the last month. From European Court of Justice (ECJ) Advocate General Yves Bot's opinion that Austrian student Max Schrems had a case and Safe Harbor is, in his opinion, invalid, to the court's ruling agreeing with Bot, the decisions have sent shockwaves through the EU, U.S. and beyond. If you missed any of the action, we've rounded up our coverage in chronological order below. For continued coverage on the possibility of Safe Harbor 2.0 and more, check Daily Dashboard. 

Sept 24, 2015
Schrems Reacts to Advocate General's Opinion on Safe Harbor
It's been a long road for Austrian student Max Schrems' group Europe v. Facebook, but today, Schrems is celebrating. ECJ Advocate General Yves Bot has issued his opinion in a case originally filed by Schrems' group alleging the U.S. National Security Agency collected Europeans' data from Facebook in violation of EU law, and it looks like Schrems' work may not have been in vain.

 Sep 24, 2015
Roundup: Privacy Pros React to Advocate General's Safe Harbor Opinion
In what has likely been the world's leading story amongst privacy news headlines this week., ECJ Advocate General Yves Bot issued his opinion Wednesday that the EU-U.S. Safe Harbor agreement is "invalid" due to U.S. law enforcement access to EU citizen data. And while such advocate-general opinions may not be binding, the ECJ has been known to follow them in an overwhelming majority of instances—to the tune of 85 percent of the time. 

Sep 24, 2015
BCRs Looking Attractive After Advocate General's Opinion on Safe Harbor? Here's Some Help
Following ECJ Advocate General Yves Bot's opinion that the Safe Harbor agreement is "invalid" due to U.S. law-enforcement access to EU citizen data, it doesn't seem too far a stretch to imagine companies worried about the future of Safe Harbor may start looking for alternatives, namely, binding corporate rules (BCRs). Here is a roundup of the IAPP's coverage of BCRs, which may prove helpful in determining whether the mechanism is right for your organization and what to expect of the process.

Oct 6, 2015
Safe Harbor “Invalid,” Rules ECJ
"Uncertainty" is the word of the day in privacy circles Max Schrems has won. In a closely watched case, the ECJ released a judgment this morning agreeing with his argument that the PRISM mass surveillance program unveiled by Edward Snowden makes the European Commission’s finding of U.S. adequacy for personal data transfer with the Safe Harbor mechanism “invalid.”  Truly, the ECJ could not have been more clear: “Decision 2000/520 is invalid.” Yet many are uncertain what the ruling means. 

Oct 6, 2015
Following ECJ Ruling, Where Does Schrems Case Go Now?
The ECJ as rocked the privacy community with its response to an inquiry made last June by then-Irish High Court Judge Gerard Hogan in a case filed by Austrian student Max Schrems. What happens next for the Schrems case, and what are the implications of the recent Weltimmo decision on this case?

Oct 7, 2015
With Safe Harbor Invalid, What's Next for Privacy Pros?
Without doubt, the historic decision by the ECJ invalidating Safe Harbor Agreement ruffled a lot of feathers in the business community, while reenergizing privacy advocates in the EU and abroad. Now that the main agreement allowing the transfer of personal data between the two regions is essentially dead, what should privacy professionals be thinking and doing? Should privacy officers expect a knock on the door from a European data protection authority?

Oct 16, 2015
Awaiting A29WP Answers with an Optimistic Giovanni Buttarelli 

Just hours before the Article 29 Working Party (WP29) was to meet on a mid-October Thursday afternoon in an extraordinary plenary session on the ECJ's Safe Harbor ruling, European Data Protection Supervisor Giovanni Buttarelli pronounced himself “largely optimistic” about the future of cross-border data transfers with the U.S. Then, when asked by an attendee at his roundtable in Brussels, if we can expect some answers soon on how to move forward, Buttarelli wasn't quite so sure. "It's not so simple to square the circle," he said. Late the next day, the WP29 released its highly anticipated statement on Schrems. Publications Director Sam Pfeifle reports from the meeting.