Bitglass Gets EU-US Privacy Shield Certification as it Eyes European Growth

Cloud access security broker (CASB) Bitglass is the first in its category to receive EU-US Privacy Shield certification from the U.S. Department of Commerce, the company announced Thursday. Bitglass is one of the first 100 companies certified as the new framework slowly rolls out.

The U.S. certification process was launched a month ago, as the Privacy Shield went into effect to replace the legally invalidated Safe Harbor agreement, and approval of applicants to the voluntary process has not been swift.

As the Department of Commerce explains, “The Privacy Shield is a framework designed by the U.S. Department of Commerce and European Commission to provide companies on both sides of the Atlantic with a mechanism to comply with EU data protection requirements when transferring personal data from the European Union to the United States in support of transatlantic commerce.”

“With the invalidation of the Safe Harbor framework, EU citizens were concerned that their data would be subject to misuse and many EU-based organizations require compliance with EU data protection rules,” said Nat Kausik, Bitglass CEO. “As Bitglass grows its presence in Europe, we believe it’s essential to keep pace with the region’s changing regulatory landscape and to be completely transparent with customers and prospects about the data we collect and how that information is used.”

A report in July by Transparency Market Research noted that “due to the rapidly changing regulatory environment in the cloud market, cloud storage vendors are increasingly relying on cloud access security brokers to outsource their platforms.” It estimates that the overall CASB market was worth $3,371.4 million in 2015 and is expected to reach a valuation of $13,218.5 million by 2024. 

Cisco acquired Bitglass’ CASB competitor CloudLock in a $293 million deal earlier this summer.

Other organizations that have received Privacy Shield certification so far include travel agencies, health information technology providers, and a handful of IT services firms, including tech giants Oracle, Microsoft, and Salesforce.

A series of outreach events will be held in the U.S. and around the world over the next few months to promote industry understanding and adoption of the framework, starting with a “Privacy Shield Boot Camp” in New York on September 12.