Global News Roundup — July 17–24, 2017

In this week's Privacy Tracker global legislative roundup, read about the more than 800 amendments proposed for the EU ePrivacy Regulation currently being formed. The Australian government is proposing a new cybersecurity law mandating that tech companies turn over encrypted messages by suspected extremists and criminals to law enforcement agencies. The U.K. government announced new drone laws, and Rwanda's government is looking into establishing an independent cybersecurity agency. In the U.S., the Federal Trade Commission is reviewing CAN-SPAM rules as part of a regulatory reform initiative, and Congressman Blake Farenthold, R-Texas, has introduced the Cell Location Privacy Act, which would require law enforcement agencies to obtain a warrant before using a cell site simulator device to locate a cellphone user.

LATEST NEWS

Telecompaper reports that Rwanda’s government may establish an independent cybersecurity agency. 
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The U.K. government has announced new drone laws requiring registration of certain drones, and safety, security and privacy training for owners, the Sunday Express reports.
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U.S. Congressman Blake Farenthold, R-Texas, has introduced the Cell Location Privacy Act, which would require local, state and federal law enforcement agencies to obtain a warrant before using a cell site simulator device to locate a cellphone user.
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The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is looking for public input on the CAN-SPAM Rules, among other things, as part of Chairman Maureen Ohlhausen’s regulatory reform initiative, The National Law Review reports.
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Arkansas’s new State Insurance Department General Omnibus Bill, which includes changes to breach notification rules, goes into effect August 1, Radar reports.
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California’s Supreme Court has ruled on the access of employer records under the California Private Attorneys General Act of 2004, The National Law Review reports.
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A Florida appeals court sided with a man who secretly recorded a meeting with a police officer limiting the state’s laws against secret recordings, the Miami Herald.
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RI Future reports, medical and civil rights groups are pushing for Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo to veto a bill that would allow police to access health information without a warrant. The bill is an effort to fight the opioid crisis in that state.
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Chicago’s Finance Committee Chairman Edward Burke has introduced three ordinances for the aldermen’s consideration: the Chicago Internet Privacy Ordinance, the Chicago Location Information Protection Act and the Mobile Privacy Awareness Act, the Chicago Sun Times reports.
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ICYMI

In this installment of Privacy Tracker’s GDPR matchup series, Alibaba Cloud's ShanShan Pa, CIPP/E, CIPP/US, CIPM, FIP, compares Hong Kong's Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance with the GDPR.
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As the clock ticks on the ePrivacy Regulation — and the ambitious aim of having it ready for May 2018 — members of the European Parliament’s civil liberties committee have submitted more than 800 amendments. Jennifer Baker has the scoop on some of the potential additions for The Privacy Advisor, including interviews with MEPs from Germany, the U.K., the Netherlands and more. 
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In response to a recent report in The Privacy Advisor, former Assistant and Interim Privacy Commissioner of Canada Chantal Bernier warns, in this exclusive for Privacy Perspectives, that Canada could very well lose its EU adequacy standing.
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Banks in Singapore will soon be allowed to invest in and operate digital platforms that offer complementary services to the banks’ financial businesses, including e-commerce and online shopping. With the relatively recent enactment of Singapore’s Personal Data Protection Act 2012, data protection is fast emerging as a key consideration in commercial transactions, particularly ones involving the acquisition of data. Charmian Aw, CIPP/A, CIPP/E, CIPP/US, reports on the details in this exclusive for The Privacy Advisor.
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US

A New York federal judge denied a motion to suppress data stemming from law enforcement access to cellphone records in a 2015 case, writing in his decision that “current Fourth Amendment jurisprudence affords no privacy interest in records created by a third party based on information voluntarily provided.” Courthouse News reports.
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The House Appropriations Committee last week unanimously agreed to add language to the 2018 appropriations bill that would require government agencies to obtain a warrant, rather than a subpoena, to access emails, texts and cloud-based data, Broadcasting & Cable reports.
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U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson announced that the Office of the Coordinator for Cyber Issues will be shut down and reorganized to fall under the State Department’s Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs, Bloomberg reports.
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Missouri has announced a new prescription drug-monitoring program that could be up and operating within a month, The Associated Press reports. The executive order signed by Governor Eric Greitens comes after previous attempts failed, due in part to privacy concerns.
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Utah state law currently mandates a warrant for the Drug Enforcement Administration to view the state prescription-drug database, but that is being weighed by U.S. District Judge David Nuffer in a case that pits health care privacy against a need to combat the country’s opioid drug epidemic, ABC News reports.
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The Burlington Free Press reports, a recent investigation by the Vermont attorney general found that a facial-recognition program in use at the Department of Motor Vehicles to be in violation of state law.
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ASIA-PACIFIC

The Australian government is proposing a new cybersecurity law mandating tech companies, such as Facebook and Google, turn over encrypted messages by suspected extremists and criminals to law enforcement agencies, the Guardian reports.
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The debate over the right to privacy in India continues as the nine-judge bench of the Supreme Court made first observations last Wednesday, finding that privacy is not an absolute right and that there is a need to define the “amorphous” term, The Hindu reports.
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CANADA

Ontario Information and Privacy Commissioner Brian Beamish is calling for stronger privacy protections in a new set of child welfare laws, The Toronto Star reports.
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EUROPE

A new opinion from the advocate general of the Court of Justice of the European Union states that a student's exam script should be considered personal data, The Irish Times reports.
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