Electronic data has become an essential source of evidence in the investigation and prosecution of transnational crime.Yet access to such data is often complicated by its cross-border nature, as information may be stored, processed, or controlled outside the territory of the investigating state.Traditional mechanisms of international cooperation, particularly mutual legal assistance, were not designed for the scale and speed of electronic evidence and have proven increasingly inadequate.In response, states have adopted different approaches, including unilateral assertions of extraterritorial jurisdiction, regional cooperation frameworks, and data localisation measures.This article analyses how cross-border data collection is regulated in the United States and the European Union and considers the implications of these approaches for ASEAN.It suggests that neither model offers a complete answer and that, in the short term, ASEAN should concentrate on improving existing cooperation mechanisms and strengthening regional coordination in a way that remains consistent with its institutional setting and respect for state sovereignty.
Vu et al. (Mon,) studied this question.