Privacy Tracker

(Sep 20, 2016) In this week’s Privacy Tracker legislative roundup, read about plans in Antigua & Barbuda to craft drone privacy legislation. A Canadian bill that would keep genetic testing information private is on shaky ground. The EU Court of Justice ruled to give protections to providers of free Wi-Fi. Israel’s Supreme Court has upheld the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act and ILITA has put out draft guidelines on workplace monitoring. Zimbabwe is working toward a cybercrime law. And in the U.S., the s... Read More

Privacy Tracker

(Sep 12, 2016) The regime for processing special categories of data has not changed, or has it? At face value, the regime for processing special categories of data has remained unchanged under the EU General Data Protection Regulation. If you can understand the shortcomings of the current system and how the Article 29 Working Party has sought to resolve them, then you can detect how these shortcomings have now been addressed in the GDPR and a new changing landscape is revealed. The GDPR, in fact, introduces ... Read More

Privacy Tracker

(Sep 12, 2016) In this week’s Privacy Tracker legislative roundup, read about a privacy and security bill proposed by Myanmar’s House of Representatives Bill Committee. Also, Singapore and Hong Kong tax authorities have agreed to share financial data to fight tax evasion, and Kenya is looking for more data sharing to fight financial crimes. European Court of Justice Advocate General Paolo Mengozzi said the passenger data agreement between Canada and the EU needs to be renegotiated. And in the U.S., lawmakers a... Read More

Privacy Bar Section, Privacy Tracker

(Sep 8, 2016) On August 17, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners published a draft model law to regulate the data security practices of insurance entities, requesting public comment by Sept. 16. The NAIC is an organization created as a forum for state insurance leaders to coordinate, promote consistency and set standards and best practices. Since the insurance industry in the U.S. is regulated at the state level through the departments of insurance for each state and jurisdiction — fifty-six i... Read More

Privacy Bar Section, Privacy Tracker

(Sep 6, 2016) Certain provisions of Turkey’s new data protection law go into place in October. New South Wales will not allow court action against privacy violations but plans to propose a revenge porn bill. Hungary’s data protection authority has issued new guidance on conducting employee background checks. Canada has two new privacy torts. The leader of the U.K. Labour Party has released a digital democracy manifesto. And in the U.S., a California bill criminalizing the distribution of a recording or transc... Read More

Privacy Tracker

(Sep 2, 2016) The 9th U.S. Circuit Court ruled this week that common carriers are exempt from all FTC Act Section 5 actions. The ruling gives AT&T a legal victory over the Federal Trade Commission, but has more far-reaching implications than even AT&T may have anticipated. Background When AT&T became the exclusive service provider for iPhones in the United States in 2007, it offered iPhone customers an “unlimited” mobile data plan. This plan allowed users unlimited data for a fixed monthly rate.... Read More

Privacy Tracker

(Aug 30, 2016) Yesterday, the Federal Aviation Administration’s long-awaited small unmanned aircraft systems rule went into effect, for the first time broadly authorizing commercial drone operations. This is a positive step, as drones have great safety and efficiency benefits for the public. Nevertheless, the American public remains concerned about drone privacy issues.   The prevailing thinking among privacy watchers is that the FAA punted on the issue of drone privacy standards in the rule. The rule does no... Read More

Privacy Tracker

(Aug 29, 2016) The Australian government has released a list of legislation it plans to propose in the spring Parliament sittings, including a mandatory data breach notification bill. Germany is considering loosening its tough privacy laws after a series of terror attacks. The U.K. is considering a plan to sell patient data to privacy companies. And in the U.S., California has two new privacy laws protecting the data of students and applicants to its health insurance exchange, while a bill to protect biometric... Read More

Privacy Tracker

(Aug 22, 2016) If a tree falls in the woods and there’s no one around to hear it, does it make a sound? According to the Federal Trade Commission, yes it does. In its recent LabMD ruling, the FTC found that the mere fact that sensitive medical records were publicly available, without any evidence that consumers suffered any adverse effects or were even aware of the breach, was enough to support a finding of substantial consumer injury. In so finding, the LabMD decision offers the most detailed portrait yet of ... Read More

Privacy Tracker, Westin Research Center