Shaundra Watson serves as Senior Director, Policy, in Washington, DC, and is responsible for providing counsel and developing global policy on key issues for the software industry, with an emphasis on artificial intelligence.  In a previous BSA role, Watson also led BSA's engagement on global privacy issues.

Watson has spearheaded BSA’s contributions to key dialogues with US and global policymakers, including through written comments on AI and privacy regulatory proposals; thoughtful contributions on best practices on AI governance; and as an expert speaker in key policy engagements, including the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) hearings examining privacy approaches, a forum in India with policymakers on development of India’s privacy law, and a briefing on AI for Members of Congress.

Watson rejoined BSA after serving as a corporate in-house senior privacy and information security counsel for a Fortune 500 global entertainment company, where she advised business and technology units on CCPA and GDPR implementation and led development of global privacy compliance strategies.  

Prior to joining BSA, Watson served as an Attorney-Advisor in the Office of Chairwoman Edith Ramirez at the FTC in Washington, DC, where she advised Chairwoman Ramirez on privacy, data security, and international issues and evaluated companies’ legal compliance in over 50 enforcement actions. During her FTC tenure, which spanned more than a decade, Watson also served as an Attorney-Advisor in the Office of Commissioner Julie Brill, Counsel for International Consumer Protection in the Office of International Affairs, and an attorney in the Divisions of Privacy and Identity Protection and Marketing Practices.

In her various FTC positions, Watson played a key role on notable privacy, security, and consumer protection initiatives, including negotiating and/or implementing flagship programs advancing global data transfers, such as the  EU-U.S. Privacy Shield and APEC Cross-Border Privacy Rules, serving on the global expert committee conducting a review of the OECD’s seminal privacy guidelines, and contributing to influential policy reports -- by both the FTC and multilateral fora -- shaping responsible data practices in the context of emerging technologies. In recognition of her leadership on Internet policy and global domain name issues, Watson received the FTC's prestigious Paul Rand Dixon award. 

Prior to joining the FTC, Watson was an Associate at Hogan & Hartson, LLP (now Hogan Lovells) in Washington, DC, where she handled commercial litigation, international trade, and intellectual property matters.  

Watson has been active in advancing dialogues on privacy and AI, formerly serving on IAPP’s Education Advisory Board and the ABA’s big data task force, and as a current member of the Atlantic Council’s Transatlantic Task Force on AI and the National Bar Association’s privacy, security, and technology law section. Watson has also been a law school guest lecturer on international privacy. 

Watson clerked for Justice Peggy Quince at the Supreme Court of Florida and is a graduate of the University of Virginia School of Law in Charlottesville, VA.

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