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The Canadian government recently published a cabinet order stating that the effective date for breach notification provisions in the Digital Privacy Act would be November 1, 2018. At that time, businesses that experience a “breach of security safeguards” would be required to notify affected individuals, as well as the Privacy Commissioner and any other organization or government institution that might be able to reduce the risk of harm resulting from the breach. Continue Reading Canada Will Require Breach Notification November 1

Recently, the General Services Administration (“GSA”) announced its plan to upgrade its cybersecurity requirements in an effort to build upon the Department of Defense’s new cybersecurity requirements, DFAR Section 252.204-7012, that became effective on December 31, 2017. Continue Reading GSA to Upgrade Cybersecurity Requirements

On January 30, 2018, the UK Court of Appeal ruled that the Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Act (“DRIPA”) was inconsistent with EU law. The judgment, pertaining to the now-expired act, is relevant to current UK surveillance practices and is likely to result in major amendments to the Investigatory Powers Act (“IP Act”), the successor of DRIPA. Continue Reading UK Court of Appeal Rules DRIPA Inconsistent with EU Law

Stephen Mathias of the law firm Kochhar & Co. reports from India that in a landmark judgment delivered in August 2017, the Supreme Court of India (“Court”) unanimously held that the right to privacy is a fundamental right under the Constitution of India. The Court also delivered six separate concurring judgments, with the main judgment being delivered by four of the nine judges.

Continue Reading Indian Supreme Court Holds That Privacy Is a Fundamental Right

On August 14, 2017, the Colombian Superintendence of Industry and Commerce (“SIC”) announced that it was adding the United States to its list of nations that provide an adequate level of protection for the transfer of personal information, according to a report from Bloomberg BNA. The SIC, along with the Superintendence of Finance, is Colombia’s data protection authority, and is responsible for enforcing Colombia’s data protection law. Under Colombian law, transfers of personal information to countries that are deemed to have laws providing an adequate level of protection are subject to less stringent restrictions (for example, prior consent for certain international transfers of personal information may not be required if a country’s protections are deemed adequate). This development should help facilitate the transfer of personal information from Colombia to the United States.

On May 16, 2017, the Governor of the State of Washington, Jay Inslee, signed into law House Bill 1493 (“H.B. 1493”), which sets forth requirements for businesses who collect and use biometric identifiers for commercial purposes. The law will become effective on July 23, 2017. With the enactment of H.B. 1493, Washington becomes the third state to pass legislation regulating the commercial use of biometric identifiers. Previously, both Illinois and Texas enacted the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (740 ILCS 14) (“BIPA”) and the Texas Statute on the Capture or Use of Biometric Identifier (Tex. Bus. & Com. Code Ann. §503.001), respectively. Continue Reading Washington Becomes Third State to Enact Biometric Privacy Law

On May 25, 2017, Oregon Governor Kate Brown signed into law H.B. 2090, which updates Oregon’s Unlawful Trade Practices Act by holding companies liable for making misrepresentations on their websites (e.g., in privacy policies) or in their consumer agreements about how they will use, disclose, collect, maintain, delete or dispose of consumer information. Pursuant to H.B. 2090, a company engages in an unlawful trade practice if it makes assertions to consumers regarding the handling of their information that are materially inconsistent with its actual practices. Consumers can report violations to the Oregon Attorney General’s consumer complaint hotline. H.B. 2090 reinforces the significance of carefully drafting clear, accurate privacy policies and complying with those policies’ provisions.

On February 13, 2017, the Parliament of Australia passed legislation that amends the Privacy Act of 1988 (the “Privacy Act”) and requires companies with revenue over $3 million AUD ($2.3 million USD) to notify affected Australian residents and the Australian Information Commissioner (the “Commissioner”) in the event of an “eligible data breach.” Continue Reading Australia Enacts New Data Breach Notification Law

On February 6, 2017, the House of Representatives suspended its rules and passed by voice vote H.R 387, the Email Privacy Act. As we previously reported, the Email Privacy Act amends the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (“ECPA”) of 1986. In particular, the legislation would require government entities to obtain a warrant, based on probable cause, before accessing the content of any emails or electronic communications stored with third-party service providers, regardless of how long the communications have been held in electronic storage by such providers. Continue Reading House of Representatives Passes Email Privacy Act