Cross-Border Data Privacy And Justice: Reconciling National Laws With Global Digital Realities
- IJLLR Journal
- Apr 27
- 1 min read
Charu Singh, IILM, Greater Noida
ABSTRACT
The globalization of digital technologies has transformed personal data into a fluid, borderless resource, challenging the traditional jurisdictional boundaries of national legal systems. While states continue to regulate privacy through territorially grounded frameworks such as the GDPR, CCPA, and India’s DPDP Act, the inherently transnational movement of data generates legal conflicts, regulatory uncertainty, and uneven levels of rights protection. This paper examines the justice gap that arises from this fragmentation, analyzing how divergent national standards shape the governance of cross-border data flows. Through a comparative study of major data protection regimes and an evaluation of judicial interventions— including Google Spain, Schrems I, and Schrems II—the research highlights the growing role of courts in mediating privacy disputes within a global digital ecosystem. The paper also assesses emerging international initiatives by the OECD, Council of Europe, APEC, and the United Nations that aim to establish interoperable principles for global data governance. Despite these efforts, geopolitical tensions, digital sovereignty claims, and power asymmetries between states and technology corporations continue to obstruct meaningful harmonization. The study argues that a just and effective cross-border data regime requires globally interoperable standards, equitable participation for developing countries, and stronger international enforcement mechanisms. It concludes that a rights-based, cooperative approach is essential for reconciling national laws with the realities of global digital interconnectivity.
Keywords: Cross-border data privacy; digital sovereignty; GDPR; global data governance; surveillance; Schrems; right to be forgotten; international cooperation; digital justice; data protection frameworks.
