Samm Sacks is a Senior Fellow with the Yale Law School Paul Tsai China Center and New America. She is writing a book (to be published by the University of Chicago Press) on U.S.-China relations and the geopolitics of data privacy and cross-border data flows. Her research examines China’s information and communications technology (ICT) policies, with a focus on China’s cybersecurity legal framework, the U.S.-China technology relationship, and data governance.

Previously, Sacks launched the industrial cyber business for Siemens in Asia and worked as an analyst and Chinese linguist with the U.S. government. She also led China technology analysis for the political risk consulting firm Eurasia Group.

Sacks has published in outlets including The Atlantic, Foreign Affairs, MIT Tech Review, Lawfare, and Slate. She testifies regularly before Congress on China’s technology and cyber policies. She is widely cited in media including The New York Times, Politico, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post and has appeared in TV and radio including NPR, Bloomberg, CNBC, and MSNBC. Sacks also advises corporate clients on China’s technology regulations and is a Senior Fellow with the Cross Border Data Forum.

Last Updated: October 17, 2023

What’s Behind China’s Laws to Protect Privacy?

Samm Sacks & Mark Jia
In his article “Authoritarian Privacy” for the University of Chicago Law Review, Mark Jia writes: “Privacy laws are traditionally associated with democracy. Yet autocracies increasingly have them.” In this ChinaFile Q&A, Jia and Samm Sacks...

Conversation

10.18.19

The Future of Huawei in Europe

Samm Sacks, Yixiang Xu & more
On October 9, the European Commission and the European Agency for Cybersecurity released their long-awaited risk assessment of the region’s 5G network. Written with input from all 28 European Union members, the report warned about a 5G supplier from...

Conversation

02.02.19

What Do the Huawei Indictments Mean for the Future of Global Tech?

Adam Segal, Samm Sacks & more
The United States indictments against Huawei look set to significantly worsen already tense relations between China and the U.S. As America pressures allies to drop Huawei and other Chinese firms, U.S. and European officials point to China’s own...