Safeguarding Digital Rights and Data Flows Across Borders

ACTION AREA 2: Align Rights-Respecting Approaches to Digital and Data Governance with International Partners

Digital solidarity recognizes the necessity of the domestic governance of digital and emerging technologies but seeks to develop shared mechanisms that will help maintain an open, interoperable, secure, and reliable Internet as well as trusted cross-border data flows. It works to foster democratic values-based and rights-respecting policies.

To advance the NSS and the NCS effectively, promoting, building, and maintaining a secure digital ecosystem must be accompanied by efforts to make digital and data governance compatible across allies and partners through greater alignment, mutual recognition, and reciprocity of policies. The Department of State, along with other federal agencies, is building and reinforcing digital solidarity through support for the trusted flow of data; advocacy for multistakeholder, risk-based approaches to digital and data governance; and the promotion of shared values and governance principles for critical and emerging technologies. The Department of State, in collaboration with the Department of Commerce and other agencies, is expanding its capacity to engage in international standards development organizations and to coordinate with industry and civil society to ensure robust participation by U.S. stakeholders in standards setting processes and other international fora. The United States is also working with allies and partners to advance a common, rights-respecting vision for the digital future; negotiate a rights-respecting cybercrime treaty; and defend information integrity.