U.S., Australia in Talks for Cross-Border Criminal Data Deal

U.S. and Australian law enforcement officials are negotiating a deal that would lift barriers to tech companies sharing data related to terrorism and child exploitation in criminal probes, the Justice Department announced.

Such a pact would allow tech companies in each country to respond to search orders “without fear of running afoul of restrictions on disclosure, and thus provide more access for both countries to providers holding electronic evidence that is crucial in today’s investigations and prosecutions,” U.S. Attorney General William Barr said in a Oct. 7 statement.

The U.S. and U.K. reached a similar deal Oct. 3, the first ...