Europe passes new law safeguarding citizens' data

Europe has approved the new data protection law after politicians voted overwhelmingly in favour of new laws safeguarding citizens' data.

The new Data Protection Regulation was approved with 621 votes for, 10 against and 22 abstentions.

Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding, who first proposed the law, said that the reform was a necessity, and now it is irreversible, PC World reports.

According to the report, she said that strong data protection rules must be Europe's trademark, adding that after the U.S. data spying scandals, data protection is more than ever a competitive advantage.