Global News Roundup—February 17-23, 2015

The Chilean government has put out a draft data privacy bill that would impose new sanctions and create a data protection authority; an Ontario court has ruled that patients have the right to sue hospitals for privacy violations; Hong Kong has issued new data transfer guidance, and the U.S. is addressing cybersecurity issues. Meanwhile, advocates say the Ambush Election Rule scheduled to go into effect this spring in the U.S. diminishes employee privacy. Read about this and more in this week’s Privacy Tracker weekly legislative roundup.

LATEST NEWS

TRUSTe Blog reports on the Chilean government’s new draft data privacy bill that would create a data protection authority with regulatory and sanction powers, among other things.

Workplacechoice.org reports that the U.S. National Labor Relations Board’s Ambush Election Rule weakens worker privacy, saying it would require employers to give employee information to union organizers.

Alabama Sen. Arthur Orr (R-Decatur) says he will introduce a breach notification bill in the state’s next legislative session, which starts March 3, WHNT reports.

California Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson (D-Santa Barbara) has proposed SB 142, a drone privacy bill that underwent a first hearing last week, reports KCRA.

Illinois legislators are working to define reasonable cause in the state’s student privacy bill, which allows schools to require students to hand over social media log-in information in some circumstances, Heartlander reports.

ICYMI

The Hogan Lovells Privacy Team writes for Privacy Tracker about the challenges that our current data protection framework presents for the robotics industry.

In this Privacy Tracker post, Gustavo Artese offers an outline of Brazil’s Draft Bill for a Personal Data Protection Law.

U.S.

The Hill reports the Senate Intelligence Committee is expected to release a new cyber-threat info-sharing bill similar to last year's controversial Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act but with certain privacy protections built in.

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration released a highly anticipated framework of regulations for unmanned aircraft systems, reports PBS NewsHour.

Speaking at Stanford University, U.S. President Barack Obama announced a new executive order designed to promote private-sector cybersecurity information-sharing.

CANADA

The Ontario Court of Appeals has ruled patients have the right to sue hospitals over breaches of privacy, The Star reports.

After a five-month public consultation process and a good deal of deliberation, the Special Committee to Review the Personal Information Protection Act released its findings.

Manitoba ombudsman Mel Holley has released new rules about how public agencies can use video surveillance, Winnipeg Free Press reports.

The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada issued guidance for law enforcement agencies using body-worn cameras.

EU

The Wall Street Journal reports that a group of privacy advocates, lawyers and journalists have asked the District Court of the Hague to issue an injunction declaring the Dutch data retention law unconstitutional.

ASIA PACIFIC

Taking a step closer to following EU restrictions on overseas data transfers, Hong Kong’s Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data recently issued "Guidance on Personal Data Protection in Cross-border Data Transfer."