The European Commission’s Proposed Data Protection Regulation: A Copernican Revolution in European Data Protection Law

In "The European Commission's proposed data protection regulation: A copernican revolution in European data protection law", author Kuner argues that the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is a law so revolutionary it can legitimately be compared to Copernicus’s revelation about our solar system. The author outlines the background historical and political contexts, both within and outside of the EU, that gave rise to such a momentous piece of legislation. He then proceeds to argue that it will achieve unprecedented progress in the protection of citizens’, governments’, and corporations’ data, as well as setting a more general standard of cybersecurity prioritization in the world. In particular, the article underscores the GDPR’s harmonization efforts across EU states, its rigid requirements for corporations who do business within the Union (even those who are not based out of the EU), and its enumeration of specific rights of Internet users to protection of data and personal privacy. Kuner concludes that the GDPR, though admittedly not perfect, is nonetheless a bold first step in attempting to use a political framework to achieve real progress in the cyber realm. Key Words: Copernican Revolution, General Data Protection Regulation, Jurisdiction