The APEC principles are part of the APEC Privacy Framework, which is an inter-governmental agreement among the 21 member economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) to promote information privacy protection and the free flow of information in the region. The APEC Privacy Framework consists of four parts: a preamble, a scope, a set of nine information privacy principles, and an implementation section. The APEC information privacy principles are:
Preventing harm: Personal information controllers should take reasonable steps to protect personal information from loss, misuse, unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, and destruction, and to address the risks and challenges posed by specific technologies and business practices.
Notice: Personal information controllers should provide clear and easily accessible statements about their personal information handling practices, including the types of personal information they collect, the purposes for which they collect it, the types of third parties to which they disclose it, the choices and means they offer individuals for limiting the use and disclosure of their personal information, and how they can contact the personal information controller with inquiries or complaints.
Collection limitation: Personal information controllers should limit the collection of personal information to what is relevant for the purposes of collection and should collect personal information by lawful and fair means and, where appropriate, with notice to, or consent of, the individual concerned.
Use limitation: Personal information controllers should use personal information only for the purposes for which it was collected or for purposes that a reasonable person would consider appropriate in the circumstances, and should retain personal information only as long as necessary to fulfill the stated purposes or as required by law or regulation.
Choice: Personal information controllers should offer individuals choices and means to limit the use and disclosure of their personal information, where appropriate, and should respect the choices made by individuals.
Integrity of personal information: Personal information controllers should take reasonable steps to ensure that personal information is accurate, complete, and up-to-date for the purposes for which it is used.
Security safeguards: Personal information controllers should protect personal information with reasonable security safeguards against risks such as loss, unauthorized access, destruction, misuse, modification, and disclosure.
Access and correction: Personal information controllers should give individuals the ability to access and, where appropriate, correct their personal information that is under their control, subject to reasonable limitations, such as where the burden or expense of providing access would be disproportionate to the risks to the individual’s privacy, or where the legitimate rights of persons other than the individual would be violated.
Accountability: Personal information controllers should be accountable for complying with the privacy principles and should have in place mechanisms to ensure their implementation and compliance.
The APEC Privacy Framework is not a binding legal instrument, but rather a voluntary and flexible arrangement that allows each member economy to implement the principles according to its own domestic laws and regulations, applicable international frameworks, and cultural and social values. The APEC Privacy Framework also provides for cross-border cooperation and information sharing among member economies, as well as the development of mechanisms to facilitate the cross-border transfer of personal information, such as the APEC Cross-Border Privacy Rules (CBPR) System and the APEC Privacy Recognition for Processors (PRP) System. These mechanisms are based on a common set of rules and standards derived from the APEC Privacy Framework, and are intended to enhance the protection of personal information that flows across borders and to increase the interoperability among different privacy regimes in the region and beyond. References:
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