The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released a fact sheet clarifying violations of HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996) for which a business associate can be held directly liable. The fact sheet outlines 10 specific circumstances for which OCR has authority to take enforcement … Continue Reading
The GDPR just had its first birthday. Before the GDPR became effective, organisations were anxious because the Regulation provides for heavy penalties. But was their anxiety justified? And as a first step, how have EU member states themselves implemented the GDPR? This article will provide short answers to these questions. Local implementation efforts Although the … Continue Reading
The recent case of Green v. Group Ltd and others [2019] EWHC 954 (Ch) dealing with Cambridge Analytica’s insolvency has clarified the approach that administrators should take when subject access requests are made to the companies over which they are appointed. A failed administration… In the aftermath of the notorious data analytics activities of Cambridge … Continue Reading
On May 22, 2019, Singapore’s Personal Data Protection Commission introduced three new initiatives: a) A public consultation on data portability. The corresponding consultation paper also proposes to introduce data innovation provisions as part of the ongoing review of the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA). The consultation is open for six weeks and will close on … Continue Reading
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released a new set of Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) FAQs building upon prior guidance from OCR. The new FAQs discuss the applicability of HIPAA to covered entities and business associates that interact with health apps and explain when HIPAA regulated … Continue Reading
The UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has published new guidance on certification and codes of conduct for data processing as well as expected timetables for finalising its revised guidelines on these topics. Certification Certification is a voluntary mechanism for organisations to validate their compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679 (GDPR). Once the submissions … Continue Reading
They are the stars of the young generation, brand ambassadors for organizations and leaders on social media: influencers. With their strong presence on social media channels such as Facebook, Instagram or Twitter, influencers have a power that pays off. Thousands of users follow the day-to-day posts of their role models. Influencers are becoming increasingly important … Continue Reading
After soliciting public comments since last November, the Chinese Ministry of Public Security (MPS) published the finalized Guideline for Internet Personal Information Security Protection (Guideline) on April 10, 2019. The Guideline applies to Personal Information Holders, defined as entities or individuals that “control and process personal information” through their provision of services using the Internet, … Continue Reading
On May 7, 2019, Governor Jay Inslee of Washington signed HB 1071 into law, which strengthens the state’s data breach notification law. Washington joins the growing list of states that have recently amended their breach notification laws. Although Washington’s law was amended in 2015, the law was initially enacted nearly 14 years ago. This amendment, … Continue Reading
A few days before the entry into force of the GDPR, the CNIL imposed a 250,000 euros penalty to the company Optical Center for failure to secure personal data on its website – where a breach occurred, allowing access to invoices and purchases orders containing personal and sensitive data of customers. Further to Optical Center’s … Continue Reading
Researchers at the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) have started a series of blogs discussing the ICO’s work in developing a framework for auditing artificial intelligence (AI). In the first blog of the series, the discussion revolves around the degree and quality of human review in AI systems, specifically, in what circumstances human involvement can be … Continue Reading
On April 26, the Geschäftsgeheimnisgesetz (Trade Secrets Act, “Act”) came into effect. It took Germany over a year from the implementation deadline to transpose the Trade Secrets Directive (“Directive”) into national law. The Act replaces the provisions of the Unfair Competition Act on misappropriation of trade secrets and introduces new procedural rules for trade secret … Continue Reading
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) issued a preliminary enforcement notice to Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC). The ICO’s notice compels HMRC to delete personal data which was wrongfully collected. Consent A complaint was made to the ICO last year about HMRC relying on implied consent for the historic collection of personal data from individuals. … Continue Reading
With barely half a year until the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) takes effect in January 2020, the landmark privacy law is in a state of flux. The already-amended landmark law is likely to face further rounds of revision, and the California Attorney General is required to hammer out many key compliance requirements through an … Continue Reading
Last week, the California Assembly’s Committee on Privacy and Consumer Protection, which exercises jurisdiction over privacy and personal information protection matters, approved several amendment bills intended to clarify and narrow the scope of the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA or the Act). In January 2020, the CCPA will impose landmark burdens and obligations on businesses … Continue Reading
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) filed a Notice of Enforcement Decision (the “Notice of Enforcement”) on April 26, 2019, confirming the agency’s reconsideration of its prior interpretation of the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act’s (the “HITECH Act’s”) penalty structure. Effective immediately, the maximum penalty that the HHS … Continue Reading
Check out this month’s edition of The Privacy Advisor, a publication of the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP), for Aaron Lancaster and Divonne Smoyer’s and Q&A with Vermont Attorney General T.J. Donovan. As attorney general, he has taken an active role in advocating for consumers’ rights with respect to privacy and data security by … Continue Reading
On 3 April 2019, the Conference of German Data Protection Authorities (‘German DPAs’) published a resolution on the interpretation of “certain areas of scientific research” in Recital 33 of the GDPR and the concept of ‘broad consent’ (‘Resolution’). According to Recital 33 of the GDPR, it “is often not possible to fully identify the purpose … Continue Reading
The European Data Protection Board (EDPB) met for its ninth plenary session on 9 and 10 April 2019. The EDPB discussed a number of issues concerning the application of the General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679 (GDPR), outlined in the agenda. One of the key developments was the adoption of draft guidelines by the EDPB on … Continue Reading
On April 10, U.S. lawmakers introduced the Algorithmic Accountability Act (the AAA). The AAA empowers the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to promulgate regulations requiring covered entities to conduct impact assessments of algorithmic “automated decision systems” (including machine learning and artificial intelligence) to evaluate their “accuracy, fairness, bias, discrimination, privacy and security.” The bill is evocative … Continue Reading
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) announced its intent to fine Bounty (UK) Limited (Bounty) £400,000 for breaching the Data Protection Act 1998 (the Act). Due to the timing of this breach, it was governed by the Act rather than by the General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679 (GDPR). The maximum penalty permitted under the pre-GDPR regime … Continue Reading
On 23 April 2019, Singapore’s Personal Data Protection Commission (commission) issued two separate grounds of decision against PAP Community Foundation and Tutor City. In both cases, the commission issued warnings to the organisations for breaching the protection obligation under section 24 of the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA), but no financial penalty was imposed. PAP … Continue Reading
With all the focus on Brexit and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), there has not been much published about the draft e-Privacy regulation recently. Readers will remember that there had been plans to implement this companion legislation (which covers specific issues regarding cookies and direct marketing among other things), at the same time as … Continue Reading
The UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) issued a consultation on a draft code of practice for designing age-appropriate access for children accessing online products and services provided by information society services (ISS). The consultation closes on 31 May 2019. The draft code sets out principles for any online service accessed by children under the age … Continue Reading
