The Biden administration has drafted an executive order that would give the Department of Justice vast powers to stop foreign adversaries like China accessing Americans’ personal data, according to a person familiar with the matter and excerpts.
The proposal, which is being reviewed by government agencies, would also direct the Department of Health and Human Services to prevent federal funding from supporting the transfer of US health data to foreign adversaries, according to the excerpts.
But the courts halted implementation of the bans and US President Joseph R. Biden, Jr., eventually revoked them. “What’s clear is the Biden administration is grappling with how to address this new risk frontier in the US-China relationship, which is the Chinese government’s access to Americans’ sensitive data,” said Samm Sacks, a senior fellow at Yale Law School’s Paul Tsai China Center, who examines information and communications policies.
US intelligence has warned about the risks posed by Chinese companies collecting Americans’ personal data by investing in US firms that handle sensitive healthcare information. China’s BGI purchased US genomic sequencing firm Complete Genomics in 2013 and in 2015, Chinese WuXi Pharma Tech acquired U.S.