Swiss Information Privacy Law and the Transborder Flow of Personal Data

Switzerland, like the European Union, has an extensive protection of privacy. An omnibus law, the Data Protection Act, ensures a high level of protection for every data relating to an identified or identifiable person, including legal persons. This Act applies both to data treated inside Switzerland and to data exported abroad. Data can only be transmitted if an adequate level of protection is granted.For countries where the legal framework is not deemed to be sufficient like the U.S., particular contractual clauses are necessary. In order to facilitate the exchange of data Switzerland and the U.S. have developed a Safe Harbor Framework. Every company certified compatible with the Safe Harbor is automatically recognized as offering the adequate level of protection required under Swiss law.