The White House plans to sign an executive order aimed at restricting the sale of sensitive U.S. personal data to adversarial nations, such as China and Russia. This decision underscores growing concerns over the potential for such data to be weaponized for espionage, hacking, and blackmail by foreign intelligence agencies.
The forthcoming executive order is designed to counteract the risks posed by the extensive and often revealing data generated through various digital means, including mobile applications, smartwatches, and vehicle sensors. Administration officials have highlighted the ease with which this data can be repurposed by adversaries to undermine U.S. security interests.
Data brokers, entities that trade in personal information covering aspects such as Social Security numbers, names, addresses, and employment history, have been identified as a key conduit for such sensitive data reaching countries of concern.
Moreover, the order mandates the Departments of Defense, Health and Human Services, and Veterans Affairs to ensure that federal grants do not inadvertently facilitate foreign access to sensitive health data.
This policy initiative comes in response to a growing body of evidence, including a declassified U.S. intelligence report from last year, indicating that personal data sold online is an increasingly valuable tool for intelligence gathering by both U.S. and foreign agencies.
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