Cross-border Data Flows Research Articles

Cross-Border E-Commerce Business Model Based on Big Data and Blockchain

In the context of the rapid development of Internet technology, the integration of the world economy has been strengthened. The continuous innovation of technology and foreign trade business forms has promoted the rapid development of cross-border e-commerce (CBE). Based on the research on the development status of CBE, this paper analyzes the reasons for the above problems in the development of CBE and discusses the innovation of CBE business models based on blockchain. Its purpose is to study the CBE business model based on big data and blockchain. This paper proposes to build a CBE framework system based on blockchain. It also uses blockchain technology (BT) to provide solutions to the problems of trust, customs supervision, cross-border payment, cross-border logistics, and cross-border data flow encountered in CBE. According to experimental statistics, China’s CBE exports were 7.29 trillion yuan, an increase of 40.1%, and imports were 3.76 trillion yuan, an increase of 16.5%.

International Law Protection of Cross-Border Transmission of Personal Information Based on Cloud Computing and Big Data

Cross-border data flow brings new growth and opportunities for the development of digital economy, but disordered cross-border data flow may damage national security, public interests, enterprise interests, and data sovereignty. At present, the unified rules for global regulation of cross-border data flow have not yet been formed. The existing rules are mainly led by developed countries like Europe and the United States. There is huge room for improvement in the international legal protection of cross-border transmission of personal information. This paper introduces the privacy protection mechanism of personal information data under the digital trade environment in China, that is, the privacy protection framework under the background of big data, cloud computing, and the cloud service selection method of data life cycle privacy protection. At the same time, we combined with many problems existing in the cross-border transmission of personal privacy information in China and compared with foreign advanced experience, and this paper puts forward China’s response path to clarify the obligations of data controllers and exporters, improve the responsibilities of regulators, improve the legislation of cross-border data flow, and improve the operability of the law; we vigorously carry out international cooperation and actively participate in the formulation of international rules, so as to further protect the rights and interests of personal privacy information protection.

Governing Cross-Border Data Flows: International Trade Agreements and Their Limits

In modern international competition and cooperation, digital trade rules centered on the cross-border flow of data have become a competitive advantage for countries. Under the guidance of commercial freedom, the United States chooses to actively promote the free flow of data across borders. The European Union has placed the protection of personal data rights before the cross-border flow of data through the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), and developing countries generally reserve space for industry policy interpretation. As one of the world’s largest economies, facing the needs of domestic industrial development and the pressure of international systems, China’s cross-border data flows’ policy is to ensure data flows under the premise of security, protection of personal information, seek international coordination of rules, and the freedom of transmission. The key question, therefore, is how to facilitate interoperability or find a middle ground among the divergent approaches in order to avoid the fragmentation of the digital trade system. The article suggests that a thin and narrowly scoped WTO agreement on e-commerce rules on cross-border data flows with sufficient policy space to accommodate different needs, policy preferences and priorities, and local contexts via legitimate exception provisions would be a welcome movement.

A SWOT Analysis of China’s Bid to Join the CPTPP

This study aims to discuss the opportunities and challenges of China’s bid to join the CPTPP through a SWOT analysis. Due to the continuous reforms and active participation in international rulemaking, China is getting closer to reaching the CPTPP standards. But to gain the membership of the CPTPP, there are still some impediments to overcome: get the consent of all CPTPP members and meet the high standards, especially those related to cross-border data flows, labor protection, and restrictions on state-owned companies.

Impact of data trade restrictions on IT services export: A cross-country analysis

Trade in digital goods and services have witnessed increasing growth in recent years, accompanied by a corresponding increase in data flows across national boundaries. At the same time, governments around the world have enacted data policies that restrict such cross border data flows in their effort to claim sovereignty over data generated from within their countries. However, scholars have long proclaimed that any restrictions to the Internet and associated digital trade will have serious economic consequences. Given this context, we analyze the impact of data policies that impose restrictions on digital trade, specifically on cross border data flows. We construct Market Data Restrictions Index (MDRI), that measures the data restrictions faced by an exporting country from their trade partners. We use a variation of random effect model on a panel data set consisting of 60 countries that contribute to more than 50 percent of IT services export during the period 2006–2017. The results indicate that apart from variables such as Foreign Direct Investment, and Service Value Added, the MDRI of partner countries has a moderate negative effect on IT services export. If countries move from liberal policies to stringent data restrictions, the economies of the country that exports its ICT services to these partner countries is affected substantially. Hence government regulators shall be cautious in imposing stringent data restrictions as it affects global digital trade.

Online Personal Data Protection and Data Flows Under the RCEP: A Nostalgic New Start?

This article analyses the institutional designs of online personal data protection, location of computing facilities and cross-border data flows (hereinafter referred to as ‘data-related issues’) in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the free trade agreements (FTAs) concluded between/among the RCEP Parties (hereinafter referred to as ‘inner-FTAs’). Varied institutional designs of the RCEP’s inner-FTAs suggest that uneven liberalization of data flows and regulatory fragmentation are prominent among the parties, but the inner-FTAs are still rooted in the conventional rationale of embedded liberalization. Comparatively, the RCEP’s institutional design concerning data-related issues diverts from the conventional rationale by formally harmonizing its heterogeneous inner-FTAs: the RCEP partially assimilates its inner-FTAs while making some innovations referring to some old elements of the multilateral trading system. In substance, the RCEP allows the Parties to have more autonomy to cultivate consensus and re-adjust the regional legal order as it reasserts the dominance of domestic regulation. The RCEP may head for two directions: it may either complement the multilateral trading system or grow into a novel regional legal order. The destination largely depends on whether the Parties can reach consensus. During the transitional period, soft law and non-state actors will play important roles in bridging the regulatory divide under the shadow of domestic regulation. Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), free trade agreements, institution, institutional design, online personal data protection, cross-border data flows, data localization, soft law, non-state actor, new legal order

Development of a risk index for cross-border data movement

Cross-border data transmission in the biomedical area is on the rise, which brings potential risks and management challenges to data security, biosafety, and national security. Focusing on cross-border data security assessment and risk management, many countries have successively issued relevant laws, regulations, and assessment guidelines. This study aims to provide an index system model and management application reference for the risk assessment of the cross-border data movement. From the perspective of a single organization, the relevant risk assessment standards of several countries are integrated to guide the identification and determination of risk factors. Then, the risk assessment index system of cross-border data flow is constructed. A case study of risk assessment in 358 biomedical organizations is carried out, and the suggestions for data management are offered. This study is condusive to improving security monitoring and the early warning of the cross-border data flow, thereby realizing the safe and orderly global flow of biomedical data.

The Application of Artificial Intelligence Oriented to the Internet of Things Technology in the Complexity of Digital Crossborder Trade

With the continuous update of technologies such as cloud computing, big data, AI, and 5G, various IoT services have also been developed. Various IoT terminals have emerged one after another, and the number of access terminals has also risen sharply. With the development and popularization of a new generation of artificial intelligence technology, the Internet of Things mainly connects various objects to each other in an agreed manner through various sensing devices and conducts wireless communication and data exchange to achieve object-to-object communication, positioning, traceability, intelligent identification, and management. The Internet of Things has broad application prospects in many aspects such as intelligent robots, transportation, and intelligent buildings. Accurate node positioning is considered to be the focus of the application of the Internet of Things in geographic and network location services. More and more experts and scholars have begun to worry about the future development of artificial intelligence technology. While artificial intelligence technology provides convenience to the society, it may also cause huge hidden dangers to the public safety of the entire society. Therefore, it is necessary to make decisions about the technical risks of artificial intelligence. Philosophical analysis has certain historical, practical significance, and theoretical value. Internet technology innovation and digital technology innovation continue to emerge. Digital trade has become a typical feature of the current economic structural transformation, and it is also a new driving force for countries to participate in the division of labor in the global value chain. At present, the scale of global digital trade continues to expand, but there are still many restrictions on digital trade rules. Digital trade tariff barriers and nontariff barriers in digital trade such as crossborder data flow restrictions, intellectual property infringements, and personal information protection are bound to have an impact on the global value chain division of labor system. IoT technology-oriented artificial intelligence accelerates the logistics speed and tracking efficiency of digital cross-border trade, improves consumers’ willingness to spend, and promotes the development of the entire e-commerce trade field.

Cross-Border Data Flows, the GDPR, and Data Governance

Today, cross-border data flows are an important component ofinternational trade and an element of digital service models. However, they are impededby restrictions on cross-border personal data transfers and data localization legislation. ThisArticle focuses primarily on these complexities and on the impact of the new EuropeanUnion (“EU”) legislation on personal data protection—the GDPR. First, this Articleintroduces its discussion of these flows by placing them in their economic and geopoliticalsetting, including a discussion of the results of a lack of international harmonization of lawin the area. In this framework, rule overlap and rival standards are relevant. Once thissituation is established, this Article turns to an analysis of the legal measures that havefilled the gap left by the lack of international regulation and the failure to harmonize law:extraterritorial laws in the European Union (regional legislation) and the United States(state legislation); and data localization laws in China and Russia. Specific provisionsrestricting cross-border personal data transfers are detailed under EU legislation, as are theinternational agreements that have been invaluable in allowing flows between the UnitedStates and the European Union to continue—first the Safe Harbor, and now the Privacy Shield. Finally, in this context, the role of data governance is investigated, both in thecontext of data controllers’ accountability for the actions of other actors in global supplychains under EU law and under the Privacy Shield. Thus, this Article goes beyond the lawitself, to place requirements in the context of the globalized business world of data flows,and to suggest ways that companies may improve their compliance position worldwide.

Economic Imperatives of Evolving National Digital Policy: A Call for a Modern Industrial Policy Framework in India

ABSTRACT The world economy is witnessing the rapid digitization of global production, trade, and consumption of goods and services, which is significantly impacting economic activities in both developing and least developed countries. In this article, we examine and review the evolving framework of the national e-commerce policy in India and map digital policies in the broader contours of the industrial policy framework. Findings of this article show that interventionist policies such as localization of data and restrictions on cross-border data flows are vital for building domestic digital infrastructure, firms, platforms, and capabilities.

Cross-Border Data Flows: An Evolving Multi-Layered Regulatory Approach Required!

This article will discuss the increasing importance of the multi-layered approach that personal data is taking in transnational cross-border data flows. It examines the role personal data plays in the evolving digital economy. The article will address a further accentuating question as to how far, if at all, the cross-border data flows are being considered in the area of national security. Throughout the outbreak of coronavirus, technology has been used by nation states to trace and collect health data of its citizens, in the interest of the broader national interest/security of individual states. Some states in developing the technology to track and trace their citizens went one step further and established bilateral agreements to share some of the data, such as Australia and Singapore. What emerged, was the evolving complex layers regulating while enabling data flows. The dichotomy facing governments and regulators is to allow for the free flow of personal data, while ensuring data subjects do not relinquish their privacy. To achieve this, I propose a Theory Of Action (TOA). Such an approach is widely accepted in other industry sectors where governments regulated a minimum standard, such as primary, human health and food production. Cross-Border Data Flows, Data Transfers, Digital Economy, National Security, Trade in Data

The Influence of RCEP on the Regulation of Cross-Border Data Flow and China's Response

The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP), as an important regional Free Trade Area agreement (FTA), provides for new provisions for cross-border data flow. RCEP focuses on the security, which allows cross-border data flow basis on respecting national data sovereignty while setting up basic security exceptions. This respect-based cooperation and co-governance model is different from the "zero-sum game" in Europe and the United States.In addition, the RCEP cross-border data flow clause plays a great significant role in promoting regional digital governance and improving the global data flow rules when the WTO related rules lag behind.As the RCEP contracting party, China should be as the external driving force, on the fundamental of the national security concept to expand the level of open cross-border data flow, form data governance "Chinese template", contribute to digital development and data governance wisdom and Chinese solutions, promote a more inclusive, more open digital pattern of international law.

Research on Cross-Border Flow of Vehicle Data

As vehicles are increasingly intelligent and connected, the amount and frequency of vehicle data flowing across borders is growing. The issues of cross-border flow of vehicle data has attracted regulatory attention from many countries and gained widespread industry interest. This paper three main situations for the cross-border flow of vehicle data and the critical issues they bring about. Based on the results of tests carried out on the vehicle, captured packet analysis can verify the presence of data outbound from the vehicle.

Governing Cross-Border Data Flows: China’s Proposal and Practice

Beijing’s quest for a more prominent role in a changing international order requires greater ability to shape global rules and norms in emerging strategic domains like cyberspace. Cross-border data flows, an important driving force behind the digital economy, give rise to growing concerns about potential threats to national security and individual privacy. In contrast with the Western approach that focuses on maximum data freedom, China’s proposal for cross-border data governance prioritizes security, order, and development. Contrary to outside expectations that Beijing’s restrictive data policies allow little room for international alignment on data security governance, China has shown sufficient flexibility and open-mindedness in major international initiatives for norm setting and institution building. Moreover, Beijing insists that as a global common, cyberspace should not become a new battlefield of great power competition, but instead help advance the shared interests of developing nations.

Challenges faced by Russian companies involved in cross-border data flows

Against the backdrop of the liberalisation of international data flows, Russia has been strengthening its data localisation policies for the purposes of safeguarding its national security and protecting the rights of its citizens to personal data, and the corresponding costs of non-compliance are rising. In recent years, cases such as Google being fined heavily by the Russian authorities have raised awareness of the need for companies involved in Russia to comply with cross-border data regulations in Russia. The differences in data legislation between Russia and other countries have created new challenges in terms of legal risks and costs for companies involved in Russia, and companies should face up to the challenges of data compliance and be prepared to avoid data compliance risks.

Production, Trade, and Cross-Border Data Flows

Production, Trade, and Cross-Border Data Flows

International Investment Policy and the Coming Wave of Data-Flow Disputes

The ability to move digital data internationally has become an asset to countless businesses. Yet an increasing number of countries’ data regulations hinder these cross-border data flows. As such, many have speculated that companies could protect their interests in data flows through international investment law, a regime that lets companies sue foreign governments for harm to private assets. Yet the literature has largely been cursory or equivocal about these suits’ likely success. This Article argues that, under current law, such suits have a strong—if not unassailable—legal basis. Critically, the reality of global data regulation and digital commerce means such suits are only likely to arise in specific contexts. In those contexts, a close reading of the current law reveals that companies will have well-grounded arguments under the treaties, caselaw, and policy of today’s investment regime. The regime’s history also bodes well for them. The real viability of these suits has counterintuitive, opposing implications. On the one hand, such suits could bolster the resilience of—and even catalyze—beneficial domestic and international data regulation by solidifying emerging legal norms. On the other, they could deter countries from adopting such regulation. This negative effect results from the risk that international investment law, by superintending data regulation, will become a form of data regulation itself. To prevent this regulatory spillover, investment tribunals in data-flows cases should reinvigorate a longstanding but neglected tool in the international-investment caselaw: the Salini test. A binding application of Salini in data-flows cases can preserve international investment law’s ability to strengthen beneficial data regulation while ensuring the investment regime remains centered on its economic domain: capital flows—not data flows.

The Best Data Plan Is to Have a Game Plan: Obstacles and Solutions to Reaching International Data Privacy Agreements

The modern digital world relies on the instantaneous transfer of data. This digital highway is essential for the growth of the modern digital economy and contributes to the rise of globalization. In order to facilitate these data transfers, ground rules must first be put into place. To date, there are few, if any, binding international data privacy agreements. This is in part due to practical considerations, such as high administrability costs, inadequate enforcement agencies, and complex jurisdictional procedures. More fundamentally, however, this is due to competing incentive structures, as countries are incentivized to protect their own digital sovereignty by limiting the transfer of their own data, but also wish to accept the data flowing from other countries. The result is a zero-sum game between local data protectionism and free crossborder data flows. To understand how these incentive structures function and how to resolve various gridlocks, this Note delves into the Safe Harbor Agreement between the United States and the European Union and applies an analytical game theory approach to track the agreement’s formation and its eventual breakdown. This Note concludes by proposing several potential solutions to overcome the obstacles preventing the successful implementation of international data privacy agreements.

Outbound Data Legality Analysis in CPTPP Countries under the Environment of Cross-Border Data Flow Governance.

The governance of cross-border data flows around the digital economy, data security, and data sovereignty has become a crucial global governance issue. This paper evaluates the legitimacy of data exit rules of CPTPP countries based on machine learning algorithm models under the perspective of cross-border data flow governance. In this study, four machine learning algorithms, namely, logistic regression, decision tree, random forest, and GBDT, are used to build an outbound data assessment and evaluation model. The confusion matrix is used to classify the outbound data legitimacy dichotomously. The recall, precision, and F1 scores are evaluated to compare the empirical results of each model. Based on this, a logistic regression-based outbound data risk scoring model is introduced to quantify the outbound data risk at a deeper level and to classify the outbound data risk level for the reference of regulators to make more scientific and reasonable decisions. The experimental results show that the machine learning models can meet the needs and applications of practical work and make accurate predictions of outbound data risks.

The new EU Standard Contractual Clauses as a type of appropriate safeguard in the international transfer of personal data

Personal data flow more freely across borders and represent one of the most significant forces behind the process of globalisation.1 Although this process is inevitable, it has to respect human rights, especially the right to data protection. One of the most commonly used transfer tools under the General Data Protection Regulation are standard contractual clauses. These tools are used in case of the transfer of personal data to third countries in the absence of adequacy decision. In June 2021 the European Commission adopted the new Standard Contractual Clauses. There is a multifaceted change concerning the new law’s scope, structure and substance compared with the previous versions. This change reflects the new requirements in light of the technological development and the Schrems II judgment. Above all, this was an opportunity to articulate all data protection requirements for international data transfers expressly. Especially, to capture lacking relations between data controllers and data processors by way of a modular approach. This paper summarises the functionality of the new standard contractual clauses in light of the content and rationale of the international transfer of personal data and provides an in-depth oversight of its scope and structure. The ultimate aim is to reach a compromise in order to both ascertain a sufficient level of data protection on the one hand, and not create unnecessary obstacles to cross-border data flows on the other. Hence, it also attempts to answer the question as to whether these standard contractual clauses will stand the test of time, especially bearing in mind some burdensome obligations.