State AG Pulse | CT AG Reacts to Genetic Data Breach
Washington’s My Health My Data Act implements strict—and separate—consent requirements for the collection and sharing of an individual’s health data, with few exceptions. As of March 31, 2024 the Washington My Health My...more
On February 13, 2024, Nebraska’s Governor signed Legislative Bill 308, which enacts additional consumer protections for consumers in the state. It is similar to another genetic information law passed by Montana last year. ...more
A data breach that exposed sensitive data collected in genetic testing that could potentially be used to target vulnerable populations has attracted the attention of Connecticut AG William Tong. In Episode 9, Chris Allen and...more
This year has proven to be active in terms of state privacy legislation. In addition to Montana’s Consumer Data Privacy Act, the state has now passed a Genetic Information Privacy Act. Montana defines “genetic data” as any...more
On June 7, 2023, Montana’s Governor signed Senate Bill (SB) 351 which revises the state’s privacy law pertaining to genetic information. This legislation takes effect on October 1, 2023. Covered Entity- Businesses...more
A recent enforcement action by the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) against 1Health.io—which sells “DNA Health Test Kits” to consumers for health and ancestry insights—serves as a reminder that the FTC is increasingly...more
The FTC reached a proposed settlement with 1Health.io Inc., also known as Vitagene, Inc., to resolve allegations that the genetic testing firm insufficiently protected consumers’ genetic and health data....more
In the FTC’s first case focused on the privacy and security of genetic information, the FTC alleges that San Francisco-based Vitagene, Inc. – now known as 1Health.io – failed to live up to its promises and unfairly changed...more
Since the privacy and security regulations were issued under the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), critics pointed to the limitations on the reach of those rules. A critical limitation...more
Effective January 1, 2022, California Senate Bill 41, the Genetic Information Privacy Act (GIPA), imposes requirements on the collection, use, and disclosure of genetic data collected or derived from direct-to-consumer...more
I have written about genetic testing kits before, but this subject matter is worth repeating. I find that people don’t always understand the consequences when sending a swab to a genetic testing company. Consumer Reports...more
Last month, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 41, the Genetic Information Privacy Act (“GIPA”), a law that regulates “direct-to-consumer genetic testing companies” that handle the “genetic data” of...more
California Governor Newsom signed the Genetic Information Privacy Act (GIPA) into law on October 6, 2021. GIPA requires direct-to-consumer genetic testing companies to comply with certain privacy and data security...more
When it comes to the privacy of health information, California belongs to the select group of states that have implemented broad consumer privacy protections above and beyond those provided by the federal Health Insurance...more
Utah recently signed into law SB 227, creating the Genetic Information Privacy Act (GIPA). The law, which is anticipated to go into effect in May 2021, is aimed at protecting genetic data collected from direct-to-consumer...more
On September 25, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed the California Genetic Information Privacy Act (“GIPA”), about which we reported. Governor Newsom expressed his support for protecting the privacy of individuals’ genetic...more
UPDATE: On September 25, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed the California Genetic Information Privacy Act (“GIPA”). On August 31, 2020, the California Legislature passed the Genetic Information Privacy Act (“GIPA”),...more
California’s “Genetic Information Privacy Act” (SB 980), vetoed on September 25, 2020 by Governor Gavin Newsom, would have established obligations for direct-to-consumer (“DTC”) genetic testing companies and others that...more
Last week the California legislature passed an important first step in protecting the American public from itself. The Genetic Information Privacy Act (GIPA) helps fill a gap in U.S. healthcare privacy that most people don’t...more
In the last days of the most recent legislative session, the California State Legislature was busy passing several privacy bills set to impact businesses. The most recent, the Genetic Information Privacy Act, would require...more
Some app developers know more about our health than our doctors do. Take, for instance, FitBit, which is attached to our wrist and measuring in real time our temperature, our heart rate, our steps and whether we have had...more
Security researchers Intezer and IBM X-Force have identified a new ransomware that is seriously vicious. It’s PureLocker—named because it is programmed in PureBasic language, which is apparently unusual. ...more