Google users in the UK to lose EU data protection privileges

Google has decided to move the accounts of all British residents out from under any EU privacy regulators. This comes as an after effect of the Brexit – Britain leaving the European Union – earlier this year, on the 31st of January. Google now plans on enforcing the US privacy regulations on the British residents.

The EU data protection rules, the General Data Protection Rules (GDPR) are known to be one the more aggressive rules Google offers. There are strict disciplinary actions such as fines that the accused can face in the event of a breach. With these now gone, the data of the British residents becomes significantly less protected. This data, although still extremely hard to be seen by the average citizen, has become easier for British law enforcement agencies to access and use to their benefit.

The United States have recently set up the CLOUD Act- A legislation that makes it easier for foreign law enforcement agencies to solicit information from US based companies that are crucial to an ongoing investigation.

This news was first acquired by Reuters, and in a statement given to Engadget, A Google spokesperson said, “Like many companies, we have to prepare for Brexit. Nothing about our services or our approach to privacy will change, including how we collect or process data, and how we respond to law enforcement demands for users’ information. The protections of the UK GDPR will still apply to these users.”