Global News Roundup—February 2-9, 2015

In this week’s Privacy Tracker global legislative roundup, read about a proposed law in Thailand that would prohibit individuals from using drones to record video without permission. Also, the Dutch government is reiterating its intent to hold onto its data retention law, and the UK Information Commissioner’s Office may now be auditing NHS authorities. In Germany, a draft law would give consumers the power to introduce class-actions for violations of the data protection law, and in the U.S., President Barack Obama’s proposals are gaining support and states are considering bills targeted at biometrics, drones, government surveillance, body-worn cameras and license-plate reader data. 

LATEST NEWS

Florida Rep. Ray Rodrigues (R-Ft. Myers) has introduced a privacy bill that would “prohibit the use of automated license-plate readers without a warrant, in most cases, and further ban retention of any legally collected data, effectively blocking a federal program tracking millions of cars,” reports Tenth Amendment Center.

KTVQ Billings News reports onMontana bills tackling license-plate reader data, event data recorders and email privacy, among others.

Biometric Update reports market research firm Goode Intelligence has published a whitepaper entitled The Impact of Privacy and Data Protection Legislation on Biometric Authentication.

Watchdog.org reports on an expected move to kill two bills in the Virginia legislature that would extend USA PATRIOT Act powers to the Virginia Office of the Attorney General and allow local law-enforcement agencies to seal “administrative subpoenas.”

A Virginia bill that reported out of Senate unanimously last week would limit police retention of license-plate reader data to seven days, reports Augusta Free Press.

The German government has approved a draft law that would, among other things, empower consumers to initiate legal action for injunctive relief against companies violating the data protection law, reports The National Law Review. 

Telecompaper reports the Dutch government responded to questions from Parliament saying its data retention legislation was implemented legally, and the justice minister reiterated the intent to maintain the law.

California Sen. Mark Leno (D-District 11) plans to introduce California’s Electronic Communications Privacy Act requiring law enforcement to get a warrant to access email and that they not interact with any electronic device in the possession of a citizen, reports Ars Technica.

AllGov California reports on a state databank of blood-spot samples and a bill proposed by Assemblyman Mike Gatto (D-Glendale) that would allow a parent or guardian to have a baby’s blood sample destroyed or not used for research.

Watchdog.org reports Idaho Rep. Lynn Luker (R-Boise) has introduced legislation to form a task force to study how the state and local school districts handle student information.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports on criticism of legislation in the Senate requiring Kansas law enforcement officers to wear body cameras that emerged during Senate Corrections and Juvenile Justice Committee testimony.

Minnesota lawmakers are considering proposals to amend the state’s Constitution to extend Fourth Amendment protections to email and other electronic communications, reports KMSP-TV.

Journal of the San Juan Islands reports Washington state’s House Technology and Economic Development Committee held public hearings on two proposed bills from Rep. Jeff Morris (D-Mount Vernon) to limit the collection of personal data by drones and other biometric data collection tools.

U.S.

A bipartisan trio of House members is reintroducing the Online Communications and Geolocation Protection Act, which would require warrants to obtain email or location information, The Hill reports.

IAPP VP of Research and Education Omer Tene writes that a speech Federal Trade Commission Bureau of Consumer Protection Director Jessica Rich gave last week “maps out the state of play at the intersection of technology, law and policy” in this post for Privacy Perspectives.

Lawmakers in Congress are making a bid at revamping the 1986 Electronic Communications Privacy Act, The Hill reports.

Reuters reports on behind-the-scenes efforts by the White House and bipartisan lawmakers to get a student privacy bill off the ground, Reps. Luke Messner (R-IN) and Jared Polis (D-CO) are expected to unveil a bill in the coming weeks.

The U.S. intelligence community and its EU counterparts are negotiating legislation that would enable non-Americans to "seek judicial redress for intentional or willful disclosures of protected information," Sputnik reports.

Reuters reports that as part of the White House's budget proposal, President Barack Obama is asking Congress for $14 billion in funding for cybersecurity across the U.S. government.

In this feature for The Privacy Advisor, Ron Breaux and William Marsh predict the kinds of trends we'll see this year in privacy, including personal health information putting more companies at risk under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act; data breach plaintiffs successfully bringing "harm" cases and the Federal Trade Commission's authority to regulate data security being increasingly challenged.

In a column for The Atlantic, Profs. Danielle Citron and Woodrow Hartzog explain the significance of the Federal Trade Commission settlement with the founder of a revenge porn website.

The Obama administration has released a 22-page report on big data and the issues around so-called “price discrimination.”

In The White House Blog, John Podesta looks at big data and privacy, the administration’s progress on privacy and the work the White House and legislators are doing to deliver on promises around student privacy.

The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society recently sent a letter to Congress calling for enhanced privacy measures and healthcare security initiatives, HealthIT Security reports.

CANADA

The Toronto Star reports Ontario is lagging behind other health jurisdictions on the protection of patient privacy.

EU

In this installment of Privacy Perspectives, Ghostery Chief Privacy Officer Todd Ruback, CIPP/US, CIPP/E, CIPT, discusses how self-regulation plays a role in data protection in what he calls the "Post-Internet Age" and considers when we may expect a new European data protection regulation.

Reuters reports the European Commission is considering requiring telecoms to store communications data of EU citizens in order to fight terrorism.

France's interior minister is lobbying MEPs that a passenger name record bill "is an essential tool, among many others, needed to fight terrorism," EUObserver reports.

Germany's government has announced plans to widen data retention, Deutsche Welle reports.

UK NHS authorities may be subject to compulsory audits of their data protection initiatives by the Information Commissioner's Office, V3.co.uk reports.

ASIA PACIFIC

Thailand has announced new regulations that, if implemented, would make shooting video with drones "illegal activity for civilians lacking prior permission,"Slate reports.

Hunton & Williams’ Privacy and Information Security Law Blog reports on the latest meeting of the APEC Data Privacy Subgroup and its parent committee, the Electronic Commerce Steering Group, focused on implementing APEC's Cross-Border Privacy Rules, among other items.

South China Morning Post reports on the work of Hong Kong Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data Allan Chiang, whose term comes to an end this August.