Q. and A. With Viviane Reding; New York Times, 2/2/13

New York Times; Q. and A. With Viviane Reding. "Viviane Reding, the vice president of the European Commission and the justice commissioner of the European Union, was asked to comment on trans-Atlantic data protection issues for the Slipstream column by Natasha Singer in the Sunday Business section. The following is Vice President Reding’s full statement, sent on Jan. 31, 2013. Q. Why do Europeans feel so strongly about privacy and data rights? Why was it important for you to make data protection one of your signature issues? A. Data protection legislation has a long history in Europe: the European Union has had common rules to protect personal data since 1995. Personal data protection is a fundamental right for all Europeans — this is inscribed in the E.U.’s Charter of Fundamental Rights. The principles on which our laws are found are still valid. The main problem is that our rules predate the digital age and it became increasingly clear in recent years that they needed an update."