University of Georgia School of Law alumnus Alexander White (J.D., ’09), Privacy Commissioner of Bermuda, spoke to students about current developments and careers in the field of data privacy and cybersecurity in the Dean Rusk International Law Center’s Louis B. Sohn Library this week.

Students from UGA Law’s International Law Society and Privacy, Security, and Technology Law Society attended the talk and asked questions regarding recent data privacy and cybersecurity regulations and comparative privacy regimes, such as Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation. White provided insight into the various ways students can enter into this rapidly-evolving field at both the domestic and international level, emphasizing the importance of taking related coursework and participating in international programming during law school. He mentioned the transformative impact of his own Global Externship Overseas experience in Cambodia, work that he believes mirrors his current position’s mandate to “create laws around the proper and ethical way to do something.” White also offered his perspective on emerging concepts such as Artificial Intelligence and how they impact data privacy, specifically for regulators. 

White started his career in insurance and became certified in multiple jurisdictions under the International Association of Privacy Professionals. In 2014, he transitioned into the privacy field with his appointment as the State Deputy Chief Privacy Officer for the South Carolina Department of Administration, tasked with developing a statewide privacy program. White was appointed by former Secretary Jeh Johnson to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Data Privacy and Integrity Advisory Committee (DPIAC) for a three-year term in 2017. Three years later, the Governor of Bermuda appointed White as founding head of the country’s data protection authority as Bermuda’s first Privacy Commissioner in 2020. White also teaches a Comparative Privacy Law course at UGA Law.