President Biden has signed into law the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022 (2022 CAA), which includes the Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act (Cyber Incident Reporting Act). The Cyber Incident...more
Russia initiated a full-scale invasion of one of its sovereign neighbors and the Western world has responded with censure and fury. Our governments and financial institutions have cut off Russian access to money....more
In the past 5 years businesses felt the increasingly intricate data management rules (GDPR, CCPA, BIPA) pressed against an explosion in hacking and ransomware. Companies experience pressure from legislators, regulators,...more
3/15/2022
/ Biometric Information ,
Continuing Legal Education ,
Cyber Threats ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Collection ,
Data Management ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Data Use Policies ,
Geolocation ,
Hackers ,
New Legislation ,
Privacy Laws ,
Ransomware ,
State Privacy Laws ,
Webinars
Where are you?
Your exact location is a tidbit of information that can infringe on your privacy. Knowing your location all the time can help someone map your life....more
3/9/2022
/ California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA) ,
Consumer Information ,
Data Collection ,
EU ,
Geolocation ,
Location Data ,
Location Privacy ,
Mobile Apps ,
Mobile Devices ,
Mobile Privacy ,
Privacy Concerns ,
Sensitive Personal Information ,
State Privacy Laws
Every couple of years I revisit the advancement of brainspray capture techniques - technology that allows people to direct movement or thoughts with only brain activity. The progress in the past two years has been impressive....more
As noted in our intro alert for this series, new omnibus privacy laws are coming to Virginia and Colorado and California’s existing comprehensive privacy law has been further modified by the CPRA. Don’t wait to implement your...more
Four years after GDPR was implemented, we are seeing the pillars of the internet business destroyed. Given two new EU decisions affecting the practical management of data, all companies collecting consumer data in the EU are...more
The smart house is upon us. One may be surrounding you now, with internet-enabled security systems, doorbells, air conditioner, refrigerator, mattress, windows, music speakers, and children’s toys. ...more
US policy makers struggle with the tension between protecting personal privacy and enabling law enforcement surveillance. We know that both are important, but at a certain point, prioritizing one priority shortchanges the...more
2/4/2022
/ Analytics ,
Biometric Information ,
EU ,
European Data Protection Board (EDPB) ,
Europol ,
Facial Recognition Technology ,
Law Enforcement ,
Personal Data ,
Privacy Concerns ,
Privacy Laws ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
State Privacy Laws ,
Surveillance
This article starts the 11-month countdown to develop business compliance strategies for three new omnibus privacy laws coming in 2023: January 1: the California Consumer Privacy Rights Act (which amends the existing CCPA)...more
Companies collecting consumer DNA for non-medical purposes seem to be playing fast and loose with their customers’ data, according to a well-regarded consumer watchdog. This category of private money makers, which could...more
1/19/2022
/ Consent ,
Consumer Privacy Rights ,
Consumer Reports ,
Data Collection ,
Data-Sharing ,
DNA ,
Genetic Materials ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Personal Data ,
Prior Express Consent ,
Privacy Laws ,
Third-Party Service Provider
In the before-times – the heady days of 2017 when the prices of both Bitcoin and Ethereum skyrocketed and seemed immune to gravity – several well-known companies boosted their value by claiming to build new products on the...more
Everything has a life cycle.
Bacteria, insects, people, civilizations, galaxies - all are born, live and pass into eternity eventually. So it goes with technologies....more
1/5/2022
/ Alphabet Company ,
Android ,
Apple ,
Blackberry ,
Blockchain ,
Cell Phones ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Drones ,
Facebook ,
Google ,
Innovation ,
Mark Zuckerberg ,
Microsoft ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Portal ,
Robots ,
Skype ,
Smartphones ,
Social Networks ,
Technology ,
Tracking Systems ,
Virtual Reality
How can we allow open access to sophisticated tools that can attack anyone’s phones undetected? It seems like creating tools that can only be used for illegal and immoral purposes should be banned by society. ...more
Why don’t our new privacy laws really protect our privacy? Are we going about this the wrong way?
The topic was raised in the recent Capital Forum of state and federal enforcement agencies by FTC Chair Lena Kahn, who...more
12/15/2021
/ Analytics ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Big Tech ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
EU ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Mobile Devices ,
Notice and Comment ,
Personal Data ,
Personal Information ,
Privacy Laws ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Sensitive Personal Information ,
Smart Devices ,
Surveillance
Humans are working artificial intelligence programs (AI) into business, government and daily life. Like with any new tool or technology, we start to see the initial technology flaws the more we are exposed to it....more
This week I read a worried headline claiming that, in a recent consumer data breach, the hackers had managed to access consumers’ telephone numbers. This was treated as an important and troubling revelation....more
11/19/2021
/ ATDS ,
Bots ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Digital Wallets ,
Hackers ,
Mobile Apps ,
Multi-Factor Authentication ,
Online Banking ,
Phishing Scams ,
Phone Numbers ,
Popular ,
Spyware
How would you prefer to be manipulated? If we weight your social media feed on what we know you like to see, then you will be showered with commercial clickbait. If we weight your social media feed by what is likely to spark...more
11/3/2021
/ Algorithms ,
Facebook ,
First Amendment ,
Free Speech ,
FTC Act ,
Instagram ,
Media ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Snapchat ,
Social Networks ,
TikTok ,
YouTube
Florida and California join a growing minority of states enacting laws protecting a person’s genetic information (Nevada and Alaska also have laws). Florida’s new genetic privacy law, known as Protecting DNA Privacy Act, went...more
We have all heard of targeted advertising, but what about advertising that targets your dreams. US companies have begun programs to insert their products into your sleep cycle - to set the agenda of your dreams....more
In meetings with data security professionals, the same topic tends to arise: Why are we fighting the same security battles now that we fought 20 years ago?
The history of network and cyber security seems to be a...more
Your personal information is threatened by more pernicious tools and attacks each year.
While this blog often describes poorly written privacy laws stifling business and dangerous bureaucratic overreach by privacy...more
10/6/2021
/ Apple ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Consumer Privacy Rights ,
Cyber Threats ,
Cyber-Stalking ,
Data Brokers ,
Data Collection ,
Due Process ,
Google ,
Law Enforcement ,
Mobile Apps ,
Personal Information ,
Proposed Legislation ,
School Districts ,
Software ,
Spyware ,
Surveillance ,
Tracking Systems ,
Warrantless Searches ,
Warrantless Tracking ,
Wearable Technology
Most biometric readings require your presence in the same space as the measuring tools. Facial recognition, retinal capture, fingerprints or hand geometry, even biomarked scents are measured in close physical proximity. The...more
Join Womble Bond Dickinson for our Lunch & Learn CLE Specialty Series! This webcast will offer a program focused on technology....more
Within a corporation, teams jockey for resources and promote their roles within the enterprise. It sometimes seems like important parts of the company are working at cross-purposes....more