The Connectivity Standards Alliance launched the Data Privacy Working Group, The Verge reports. The goal of the group is to create a certification which will "certify the privacy standards of smart devices." Additionally, the working group will provide information to consumers explaining how their data is used in an understandable manner. Full Story
Bipartisan leaders of the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce announced the Subcommittee on Innovation, Data, and Commerce will hold a March 1 hearing titled "Promoting U.S. Innovation and Individual Liberty through a National Standard for Data Privacy." The chairs and ranking members of the full committee and subcommittee said the hearing marks a continuation of prior efforts to pass the American Data Privacy and Protection Act proposed during the 117th Congress.
Regal Medical Group in California is facing at least five proposed class-action lawsuits related to a December 2022 ransomware attack that affected 3.3 million people, GovInfoSecurity reports. The suits allege the company failed to protect individuals' sensitive information and violated state and federal laws, including the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.
The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy is soliciting public comments on "the data collection, analysis and transparency practices of U.S. law enforcement," NextGov reports. The initiative is part of a federal effort "to enhance trust between police and local communities," per a request for information published in the Federal Register Feb. 16.
Denmark's data protection authority, Datatilsynet, published guidance on cookie wall deployment in the wake of two relevant decisions.
TechCrunch reports a study conducted by Mozilla claims Google's privacy "nutrition labels" for mobile apps don't include all data collection practices by certain apps. The research from Mozilla's "Privacy not included" series alleges top apps on Google Play, including TikTok and Twitter, share user data with various third parties but do not disclose the practices in their labels.
Politico reports privacy advocates are urging state-level privacy proposals that closely align with the American Data Privacy and Protection Act, which died in Congress last year. State Sen. Shelli Yoder, D-Ind., said the ADPPA's failure "put us in a position of needing to do something." A total of 16 states have proposed their own data privacy bills so far this year.
The California Privacy Protection Agency announced its board will next meet March 3. The agenda features the first updates from CPPA Executive Director Ashkan Soltani since the agency filed the first set of draft California Privacy Rights Act regulations with the California Office of Administrative Law. Soltani is slated to address the CPPA's annual budget and agency priorities for the coming months.
The Economic Times reports India's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology defined a child as someone under 18 years old in the proposed Digital Personal Data Protection Bill. An official said the government will be allowed to revisit the definition after a year with an eye toward moving coverage to minors under 16.