Global News Roundup—February 23-March 2, 2015

In this week’s Privacy Tracker legislative roundup, read about a plan between Labor and the Australian government that may see the controversial data retention plan enacted. In Canada, a new government proposal would see greater information-sharing between agencies such as immigration, Employment Canada and the RCMP. Russia’s lower chamber of Parliament has reportedly approved new and larger fines for violating data protection laws. Also, read an overview of 10 California privacy bills, new U.S. senators’ pre- and post-election commitments to privacy and more.

LATEST NEWS

IT Pro reports that a deal between Labor and the Australian government will mean enactment of a controversial data retention law.

A new plan out of Ottawa would boost information-sharing between Canadian immigration and border enforcement officials, Employment Canada, Revenue Canada, the RCMP and provinces, The Toronto Star reports.

The Czech Data Protection Authority has redesigned its breach notification form for electronic communications providers to include guidance on notification, Privacy This Week reports.

Hogan Lovells’ Chronicle of Data Protection reports that the lower chamber of the Russian Parliament adopted in the first reading a draft law that would increase the amounts of the fines imposed for violating Russian data protection laws and differentiate offense types.

The Hill reports that U.S. Reps. Tom Marino (R-PA) and Suzan DelBene (D-WA) are introducing the Law Enforcement Access to Data Stored Abroad Act, an identical act to the one proposed by Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) in the Senate.

The Christian Science Monitor’s Passcode offers an overview of new U.S. senators’ privacy stances going into the elections and how their commitment is shaping up now that they’re in office.

Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and others are pushing a bill proposed last May that would “create a nationwide standard for data security and require companies to tell customers about data breaches within 60 days, reports The Jersey Journal.

Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller met with the Federal Communications Commission to convince the agency to deny requests made by finance industry groups to weaken the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, WISHTV reports.

JDSupra reports on drone bills in California and Florida.

KFBK reports on a package of 10 privacy bills introduced, or soon to be, in the California legislature targeting connected cars, drones, infant DNA and more.

Two bills in front of the Illinois Senate aim to put restrictions on the use of automated license-plate reader systems, reports The Tenther.

New Hampshire’s House will vote on a student privacy bill this week that would prohibit schools from demanding access to students’ online accounts, NHPR reports.

Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum has introduced the Oregon Student Information Protection Act, aiming to protect students’ personal and academic data while enabling innovation and research, Common Sense Media reports.

The executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia tells WDBJ about the Virginia General Assembly session that included a Stingray bill, a drone bill and a license-plate reader bill.

A Virginia bill that started off requiring officials at state colleges and universities to notify parents when a student exhibits suicidal tendencies or behavior has passed with significant changes due to privacy concerns, among others, reports The Daily Progress.

ICYMI

In this Privacy Tracker post, Emily Yu, CIPP/US, provides a history of In re Hulu Privacy Litigation, noting it "reveals trends in online consumer privacy concerns and ...  Any business that uses tracking technology and social networking on their websites should pay attention."

U.S.

In the coming weeks, Rep. Jackie Speier (D-CA) will introduce a bill that would make revenge porn a federal crime, Gizmodo reports.

John Stephens and Paul Pittman write in this exclusive for The Privacy Advisor about a French court order over the right to be forgotten and the significant questions it raises about whether a U.S. court would enforce an order requiring Google to remove certain information from its search engine worldwide.

According to the Los Angeles Times, a ruling by the Federal Communications Commission could be a privacy "game-changer" because it would require ISPs to obtain consent prior to monitoring and sharing of personal information.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler has said she will likely side with Hulu in a case that claims the company violated the Video Privacy Protection Act, Courthouse News Service reports.

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) says the White House is not supporting the Senate Intelligence Committee's cybersecurity information-sharing bill, The Hill reports.

CANADA

Rahool Agarwal writes for Mondaq that Hopkins v Kay “provides important guidance in the fields of privacy law and class actions, as well as with respect to the sustainability of privacy claims that touch upon areas governed by legislation."

EU

Reuters reports the General Data Protection Regulation may be moving away from a one-stop-shop mechanism.