E-Compliance: Towards a Roadmap for Effective Risk Management

24 Pages Posted: 28 Mar 2007

See all articles by Urs Gasser

Urs Gasser

Harvard University - Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society

Daniel M. Häusermann

University of St. Gallen Law School

Date Written: March 15, 2007

Abstract

In the past decade, the legal system has done a remarkable job in absorbing the shockwaves of digital technology. As a result, the use of information and communication technologies in corporate settings in general and E-Business solutions in particular have become business as usual not only for dot-com managers, but increasingly also for inhouse lawyers and outside counsel.

The authors of this article, however, argue that the widespread use of digital communication technology on the part of business organizations leads at least in part (and most likely also latently) to new types of challenges when it comes to the management of risks at the intersection of law, technology, and the marketplace. In order to effectively manage these challenges and associated risks in diverse areas such as security, privacy, consumer protection, IP, and content governance, the authors call for an integrated and comprehensive compliance concept in response to the structural and substantive peculiarities of the digital environment in which corporations - both in and outside the dot-com industry - operate today.

The article starts with a brief overview of what we might describe as a shift from traditional compliance to e-Compliance. It then maps the central themes of E-Compliance and the characteristics of a comprehensive E-Compliance strategy. After discussing the key challenges of E-Compliance, the article outlines practical guidelines for the management of E-Compliance activities and ends with recommendations.

Keywords: Compliance, Risk Management, E-Commerce, Soft Law, Records Management, IT and Law, Web2.0

Suggested Citation

Gasser, Urs and Häusermann, Daniel Markus, E-Compliance: Towards a Roadmap for Effective Risk Management (March 15, 2007). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=971848 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.971848

Urs Gasser (Contact Author)

Harvard University - Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society ( email )

Harvard Law School
23 Everett, 2nd Floor
Cambridge, MA 02138
United States

HOME PAGE: https://cyber.harvard.edu/people/ugasser

Daniel Markus Häusermann

University of St. Gallen Law School ( email )

Guisanstr. 36
CH-9010 St. Gallen
Switzerland

HOME PAGE: http://www.fir.unisg.ch

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