The purpose of a Notice at Collection is to inform consumers of the categories of personal information the business will collect from them and the purpose(s) for which the information will be used. The Notice at Collection must be delivered to the consumer at or before the time a business collects personal information.
The Notice at Collection must contain:
(1) A list of the categories of personal information about consumers to be collected;
(2) For each category of personal information, the business or commercial purpose(s) for which the information will be used;
(3) If the business sells personal information, a link titled, “Do Not Sell My Personal Information,” or in offline notices, the web address where the “Do Not Sell” link can be found; and
(4) A link to the business’s privacy policy.
The Notice at Collection must be visible or accessible where consumers will see it before any personal information is collected. When a business collects consumers’ personal information online, it may conspicuously post a link to the Notice at Collection on the business’s website homepage or on the mobile application download page, or on all webpages where personal information is collected.
When a business collects consumers’ personal information offline, it may include the notice on printed forms that collect the information, provide the consumer with a paper version of the Notice at Collection, or post prominent signage directing consumers to the web address where the notice can be found.
There is a lot riding on the Notice at Collection because the CCPA prohibits businesses from collecting categories of personal information other than those disclosed in the Notice at Collection. If the business intends to collect additional categories of personal information, the CCPA requires that the business provide a new Notice at Collection at or before the time it collects the additional information.
If a business fails to give consumers a Notice at Collection as required by the CCPA, the business is prohibited from collecting personal information from the consumer. Importantly, as we discussed in our last post in this series, job applicants, employees, independent contractors and temporary workers all are entitled to Notices at Collection.