Privacy & Information Security Law Blog

On April 22, 2024, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights announced its final “HIPAA Privacy Rule to Support Reproductive Health Care Privacy,” which strengthens privacy protections under HIPAA for reproductive health care-related PHI.

The Maryland legislature recently passed the Maryland Online Data Privacy Act of 2024 (“MODPA”), which was delivered to Governor Wes Moore for signature and, if enacted, will impose robust requirements with respect to data minimization, the protection of sensitive data, and the processing and sale of minors’ data.

The Centre for Information Policy Leadership (“CIPL”) at Hunton Andrews Kurth recently released a report on Enabling Beneficial and Safe Uses of Biometric Technology Through Risk-Based Regulations (the “Report”).  The Report examines global laws and regulations that target biometric data and encourages adoption of a risk-based approach.  According to the Report, biometric technology applications are growing and can provide societal and economic benefits. However, there are recognized concerns over potential harms for individuals and their rights, and data protection and privacy laws are increasingly targeting the collection and use of biometric data.

In April 2024, the Centre for Information Policy Leadership at Hunton Andrews Kurth published a white paper on Leveraging Data Responsibly: Why Boards and the C-Suite Need to Embrace a Holistic Data Strategy.

On April 7, 2024, U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) released a discussion draft of the latest federal privacy proposal, known as American Privacy Rights Act (“APRA” or the “Act”). The APRA builds upon the American Data Privacy and Protection Act (“ADPPA”), which was introduced as H.R. 8152 in the 117th Congress and advanced out of the House Energy and Commerce Committee but did not become law. As the latest iteration of a federal privacy proposal, the APRA signals that some members of Congress continue to seek to create a federal standard in the wake of—and in spite of—the ever-growing patchwork of state privacy laws.

On April 17, 2024, the European Data Protection Board adopted its non-binding Opinion 08/2024 on Valid Consent in the Context of Consent or Pay Models Implemented by Large Online Platforms, stating that such models generally are not compliant with the GDPR, though their use should be considered on a case-by-case basis.

On April 12, 2024, the UK Information Commissioner’s Office launched the third installment in its consultation series examining how data protection law applies to the development and use of generative AI. 

On April 9, 2024, Representatives Tim Walberg (R-MI) and Kathy Castor (D-FL) introduced the Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA 2.0.”) The bill serves as a companion to the Senate bill by the same name.

The Connecticut Attorney General’s Office (“OAG”) has released a Report on the status of Connecticut’s Data Privacy Act (“CTDPA”), which took effect on July 1, 2023. The Report covers complaints, inquiries, and early enforcement activities under the CTDPA.

On March 27, 2024, the Kentucky legislature passed a comprehensive data privacy bill, which was delivered to the Governor for signature.  If H.B. 15 is enacted, Kentucky will join the growing list of states with comprehensive data privacy laws. 

On March 27, 2024, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (“NTIA”) issued its AI Accountability Report, and, on March 28, 2024, the White House announced the Office of Budget and Management’s (“OMB’s”) government-wide policy on AI risk management.

On April 12, 2024, the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (“ICO”) launched the third installment in its consultation series examining how data protection law applies to the development and use of generative AI. This installment focuses on how the data protection principle of accuracy applies to the outputs of generative AI models, and the impact that accurate training data has on the output. The two previous installments discussed the lawful basis for web scraping to train generative AI models, and purpose limitation in the generative AI lifecycle. 

On April 2, 2024, the California Privacy Protection Agency (“CPPA”) Enforcement Division issued its first Enforcement Advisory, titled “Applying Data Minimization to Consumer Requests.”  The purpose of this Enforcement Advisory is to address the CPPA Enforcement Division’s observation that some businesses are asking consumers “to provide excessive and unnecessary personal information in response to requests that consumers make under the CCPA.” The Enforcement Advisory serves as a reminder to businesses to apply the data minimization principle to each purpose for which they collect, use, retain and share consumers’ personal information, including information that businesses collect when processing consumers’ CCPA requests.  The Enforcement Advisory provides further guidance on how businesses may comply with the principle, noting, however, that in general, Enforcement Advisories “do not implement, interpret or make specific the law enforced or administered by the [CPPA], establish substantive policy or rights, constitute legal advice or reflect the views of the [CPPA]’s Board.” The Advisory notes several other caveats, reiterating the general point that  Enforcement Advisories do not have the force of law or safe harbor for CCPA compliance purposes.  However, the guidance provides illustrative hypotheticals and substantive insight into how the CPPA may approach enforcement in certain areas and “encourages” businesses to voluntarily comply with the law.

On March 25, 2024, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed into law a bill prohibiting minors under the age of 14 from having accounts on social media platforms.

On April 1, 2024, the U.S. and UK signed a Memorandum of Understanding that details how the U.S. and UK will work together to develop tests for advanced AI models.

On March 29, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission announced its decision to deny, without prejudice, an application for approval of a “Privacy-Protective Facial Age Estimation” mechanism for obtaining parental consent under COPPA.