Perspectives: Technology, Global Privacy & Data Protection
By Sally Vazquez Castellanos
Published on October 25, 2026 at approximately 10:21 pm.
In my chat with ChatGPT, I returned to a practical question: What happens when a company targets American consumers, but the people operating it—and the evidence needed to investigate it—are located overseas?
The internet makes it easy for businesses to reach consumers across borders. Investigators still face the limits of national jurisdiction. The U.S. SAFE WEB Act helps the Federal Trade Commission bridge that gap.
Its full name is a mouthful: the Undertaking Spam, Spyware, And Fraud Enforcement With Enforcers beyond Borders Act of 2006. Its purpose is more straightforward. It gives the FTC tools to cooperate with foreign enforcement agencies in investigating cross-border fraud and other unlawful consumer practices.
Consider a hypothetical involving ABC Corporation. The company operates abroad and markets an application to American consumers. It promises to protect personal information, but investigators suspect that its representations are deceptive. Relevant business records may be held in the United States, while the company’s operators and other evidence are elsewhere.
SAFE WEB can help the FTC and a qualifying foreign enforcement agency exchange investigative information and obtain evidence. The Act permits certain confidential information sharing, subject to statutory conditions, and allows the FTC to provide investigative assistance using its existing investigative powers.
One provision deserves particular attention: the FTC may assist a qualifying foreign investigation even when the conduct described in the request does not independently violate U.S. law. That assistance remains subject to statutory requirements, including the nature of the foreign law being enforced. A foreign request does not automatically entitle an agency to assistance or access to confidential records.
The Act also clarifies the FTC’s authority over unfair or deceptive practices involving foreign commerce. That authority reaches practices that cause, or are likely to cause, reasonably foreseeable injury within the United States, or that involve material conduct occurring here. The connection to the United States matters.
For privacy, the significance is practical. Deceptive data practices, spyware, and other consumer harms can involve businesses and infrastructure in several countries. Effective enforcement may depend on whether authorities can obtain records, share evidence, and coordinate their work.
SAFE WEB supports that cooperation. It does not create a comprehensive federal privacy law or give consumers a general right to sue under the Act. Its principal function is to strengthen government enforcement across borders.
There is also an accountability question. Sharing investigative information can advance consumer protection, but sensitive records require careful handling. The Act places conditions on disclosures to foreign agencies, including confidentiality assurances and requirements concerning the investigation or proceeding for which the information is requested. Those protections are part of the law’s design.
Congress extended SAFE WEB’s sunset date to September 30, 2027. The FTC’s 2023 report recommended making its authority permanent.
For consumers, the underlying concern remains familiar: an overseas business can cause harm close to home. For attorneys and regulators, SAFE WEB addresses a practical obstacle—how to pursue evidence and enforcement when the conduct crosses national borders.
Sources
- U.S. SAFE WEB Act of 2006, Pub. L. No. 109-455, 120 Stat. 3372, statutory text
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- Extension of the U.S. SAFE WEB Act of 2006, Pub. L. No. 116-173, § 1, 134 Stat. 837 (2020), statutory text
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- Federal Trade Commission, The U.S. SAFE WEB Act and the FTC’s Fight Against Cross-Border Fraud
(Oct. 2023).
- Federal Trade Commission, International Enforcement
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Legal Disclaimer: This article provides general information and commentary for educational purposes. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. The application of any law depends on the particular facts and circumstances. Consult qualified counsel regarding a specific legal matter.
ChatGPT Disclosure: This article was developed with assistance from ChatGPT, a generative artificial intelligence tool. AI-generated material may contain errors or omissions. Readers should consult the cited primary sources and verify current legal developments before relying on this discussion.