In this week’s Privacy Tracker roundup, read about India’s Human DNA Profiling Bill, Pakistan shutting down communications via Blackberry’s secure server and the UK investigating the expense and impact of the Freedom of Information Act. Belgium’s telecommunications regulator has begun a public consultation on the latest proposed data retention legislation, and after a meeting with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker, EU Justice Commissioner Vera Jourová said she is aiming to end Safe Harbor discussions in the coming weeks. In the U.S., the Email Privacy Act is in a position to bypass debate and move straight to approval, but CISA may have to wait until after the recess for a vote.
LATEST NEWS
EU Justice Commissioner Vera Jourová said she is aiming for a finalization of Safe Harbor discussions in the coming weeks after a meeting with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker last week, Lexology reports.
Belgian telecom regulator BIPT has opened public consultation on the proposed new data retention legislation, reports Telecompaper.
Centre for Internet and Society Executive Director Sunil Abraham discusses India’s Human DNA Profiling Bill and the potential for misuse and invasion of privacy with Business Standard.
Pakistan's Ministry of Interior is requiring all communications through BlackBerry's secure BlackBerry Enterprise Server to be shut down by December1, citing "security concerns,” reports V3.uk.co.
The UK announced plans for a five-person commission to investigate the Freedom of Information Act 2000, repots Lexology.
California expanded the definition of personal information under its data security statute, effective January 2016, reports JDSupra.
The 11th Circuit upheld a Florida law limiting doctors’ ability to talk to patients about gun ownership, reports The Washington Post.
Computerworld reports on the impact that the decisions in the New York Facebook case and the federal appeals court butt-dial case have on privacy.
ICYMI
The European Data Protection Supervisor released its opinion alongside redlined drafts of the General Data Protection Regulation, and IAPP Publications Director Sam Pfeifle analyzes the recommendations for Privacy Tracker.
Erick Iriarte of Iriarte & Asociados writes for Privacy Tracker about a new law decreed by Peru's executive branch under delegated powers that requires telecommunications companies to collect and retain consumer geolocation data and make it available to law enforcement without a warrant.
U.S.
With 291 cosponsors, the Email Privacy Act, which would modernize the 1986 Electronic Communications Privacy Act, is in a position to bypass debate and move straight to approval, Multichannel Newsreports.
The White House agreed with petitioners that "ECPA is outdated, and it should be reformed," adding that while it won't "endorse a single ECPA-reform bill at this time," it is "encouraged by the strong bipartisan support for updating this legislation."
A Congressional vote on the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act before its August recess is "unlikely,"The Hill reports.
The White House will release a new policy that aims to create consistency amongst vendors for their storage of government data, Nextgov reports.
ASIA-PACIFIC
Long-time barrister Stephen Wong Kai-yi has been appointed as Hong Kong's next privacy commissioner, South China Morning Post reports.
Hong Kong’s Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data published an updated version of its Guidance on the Collection and Use of Biometric Data, Data Guidance reports in Privacy This Week.
CANADA
The IAPP now has a web conference recording available that looks at Bill S-4, The Digital Privacy Act, its key changes and their potential impacts for all organizations handling personal information about Canadians. Hear Alex Cameron of Fasken Martineau DuMoulin and Peggy Byrne of CIBC discuss the new rules.
EU
The European Court of Human Rights has ruled that journalists can be prevented from publishing publicly available information in cases where a person's right to privacy is violated, Out-Law.com reports.
France's Constitutional Council upheld a controversial surveillance law that allows intelligence agencies to gather metadata with only approval from "an independent body created to oversee surveillance activities," The Wall Street Journal reports.
The UK Supreme Court has agreed to hear Google's appeal of Google v. Vidal-Hall, IAPP European correspondent Jennifer Baker reports for The Privacy Advisor.
EDRi's Protecting Digital Freedom reports the European Commission has said it "will continue monitoring legislative developments at the national level" for EU data retention laws.