The transnational exchange of DNA data: Global standards and local practices

Abstract

The creation of systems for the transnational exchange of information raises multiple issues related to the establishment of common infrastructures, protocols and regulation. The development and adaptation of standards is paramount in reaching operational levels of harmonization. This paper focuses on the case of a system for the improvement of crossborder cooperation in the European Union through the exchange information among databases of Member States. The Prüm Treaty and the subsequent Prüm Decisions have established a framework for the exchange of DNA profiles, dactyloscopic data, and vehicle registration data, for the purpose of combating cross-border crime and terrorism. The historical specificity of DNA profiling data in terms of the development of international standards and the sensitivity it represents for data protection regulation constitutes it as a relevant object in order to analyze the challenges raised in the context of transnational cooperation. First, this paper provides an overview of the trajectory and characteristics of DNA as an object of standardization. Second, through interviews with local actors involved in the implementation and operationalization of the network for the exchange of DNA data, the global standards are compared with practices at the local level. The adoption of minimal standards allows flexibility and autonomy at a local level, thus allowing interoperability to exist in a scenario of national differentiation. However, a relatively wide margin of discretion in terms of the routine local operation of the system can create frictions and lead to isolated solutions that can be seen as sub-optimal.