The White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) recently updated its taxonomy of “critical and emerging technologies,” emphasizing the US government’s increased focus on data privacy and cybersecurity. This move, which revises and expands on a document last revised in 2022, comes at a crucial time: the digital landscape is rapidly evolving, influenced by groundbreaking advancements in artificial intelligence, quantum technology, and more human-machine interfaces.

The OSTP’s updated list is a set of not mandates but suggestions to guide federal agencies toward prioritizing technologies that are deemed strategically important for the nation’s economic and national security. The inclusion of data privacy, data security, and cybersecurity technologies as key focus areas signifies a pivotal shift toward safeguarding digital integrity and user privacy amid the burgeoning technology.

Interestingly, this initiative comes from one side of the Biden administration that is keen to maintain the US’s technological leadership, fostering international cooperation, and addressing concerns around security threats. However this work is countered by another division of the Biden administration which, as my colleague Claude Barfield has written about, has called for a reversal of US digital trade policy, particularly regarding the support by the current and previous administrations for the free flow of cross-border data and opposition to national data localization mandates in the World Trade Organization’s e-commerce rules. The rationale given by the Office of the US Trade Representative for this change is the administration’s concerns that the free-flow of data trade rules potentially interfere with its interest in regulating “Big Tech” and the perceived anti-competitive impact.

This renewed emphasis on data security and privacy arrives at a time when the European Union has introduced the Digital Markets Act (DMA.) While the DMA seeks to create a more localized economic goals for a European digital market, it also sets the stage for potential conflicts with the heightened importance the US government places on data security and privacy.

“Europeans are driving the regulatory train because Congress can’t get its act together and the US hasn’t engaged, so the Europeans see this as an opportunity to make tech giants play by European rules,” said James Lewis, a senior vice president at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

This juxtaposition presents a complex scenario where the US government’s drive to enhance data security and privacy could potentially clash with the DMA’s mandates, especially regarding data governance and tech company operations. The EU’s new regulations will challenge the US tech industry’s efforts to comply with both domestic priorities on cybersecurity and international legal frameworks.

Benedikt Franke, vice chairman and CEO of the Munich Security Conference recently warned that new policies and regulations must be “security proofed” from the start to assess and address potential security risks, just as we attempt to “climate proof” policies today. The effects of siloed thinking across multiple governments and multiple branches of governments are causing a dangerous security knock-off effect that we need to address given global concerns of growing cyber threats.

As the digital era continues to unfold, the balance between enhancing data security and adhering to global digital market regulations will become increasingly difficult to manage. Effective policies for security and privacy call for a nuanced understanding and collaborative effort among international stakeholders to harmonize the goals of protecting digital privacy and security with the need for a competitive and fair digital marketplace.

If the OSTP’s updated focus on data privacy and cybersecurity technologies is to work alongside the backdrop of the EU’s Digital Markets Act and the bifurcated goals of our own US administration, we must acknowledge the conflicting regulatory frameworks within this critical intersection of policy, technology, and international cooperation. Balancing these aspects will be key to navigating the future of digital innovation and regulation, ensuring that advancements in technology go hand-in-hand with securing personal data and fostering a competitive global digital economy.