Privacy & Information Security Law Blog

On October 11, 2022, the Biden-Harris Administration released an informational statement about the current Administrations’ progress in strengthening America’s national cybersecurity. The statement provides detail into several new initiatives and sets goals for America’s future in cybersecurity:

On October 4, 2022, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (“OSTP”) unveiled its Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights, a non-binding set of guidelines for the design, development, and deployment of artificial intelligence (AI) systems. 

Background

On September 15, 2022, the European Commission presented its proposal for a Regulation on horizontal cybersecurity requirements for products with digital elements (the “Cyber Resilience Act”). According to the European Commission, the Cyber Resilience Act will be the first EU-wide legislation introducing “cybersecurity requirements for products with digital elements, throughout their whole lifecycle.”

On September 12, 2022, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (“CISA”) released a Request for Information (“RFI”) seeking public input regarding the Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act of 2022 (“CIRCIA”). The public comment period will close on November 14th, 2022. The RFI provides a “non-exhaustive” list of topics on which CISA seeks public input, including:

On September 9, 2022, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced its publication of final Cybersecurity Best Practices for the Safety of Modern Vehicles (the “2022 Best Practices”). The 2022 Best Practices reflect the agency’s final, non-binding vehicle cybersecurity guidance following its release of draft guidance in January 2021. The 2022 Best Practices also is an update to NHTSA’s first cybersecurity best practices document, which was issued in 2016. 

On August 16, 2022, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) charged 18 individuals and entities in relation to their involvement in a fraudulent hacking scheme. The scheme targeted and hacked 31 online retail brokerage accounts and forced them to make large purchases of certain stocks from two public microcap companies: Lotus Bio-Technology Development Corp. (“LBTD”) and Good Gaming, Inc. (“GMER”). The owners of the accounts that purchased the shares did not authorize the purchases. Both LBTD and GMER already were controlled in large blocks by fraudsters who repeatedly took steps to conceal their ownership. In doing so, the fraudsters artificially inflated the trading price and volume of the stocks and then sold the shares they had acquired at the inflated prices, generating approximately $1.3 million in proceeds and creating substantial profits.

On July 7, 2022, the Cyberspace Administration of China (the “CAC”) issued the Measures on Security Assessment on Cross-border Transfer (the “Measures”), which became effective on September 1, 2022, and provide a six-month grace period to the relevant data handlers. On August 31, 2022, the CAC issued the Guidelines on Application for Security Assessment on Cross-border Transfer (the “Guidelines”), which further clarify certain issues and provide specific application documents for security assessments (including templates of application forms for security assessment on cross-border transfer and self-assessments report for risks of cross-border transfer).

On July 26, 2022, the attorneys general of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Florida and Washington D.C. announced an $8 million multistate settlement with Wawa Inc. that resolves the states’ investigation into a 2019 data breach that compromised approximately 34 million payment cards used by consumers at Wawa stores and fueling locations. 

On June 10, 2022, New York became the first state to require attorneys to complete at least one credit of cybersecurity, privacy and data protection training as part of their continuing legal education (“CLE”) requirements. The new requirement will take effect July 1, 2023.

On July 29, 2022, the New York Department of Financial Services (“NYDFS”) posted proposed amendments (“Proposed Amendments”) to its Cybersecurity Requirements for Financial Services Companies (“Cybersecurity Regulations”). The Proposed Amendments would expand upon the set of prescriptive cybersecurity requirements applicable to all covered financial institutions, as well as impose more stringent requirements for “Class A Companies” (as defined below). There will be a brief pre-proposal comment period, followed by the official publication of the Proposed Amendments, which will trigger a new 60-day comment period. Below are the key changes introduced by the Proposed Amendments.

On July 21, 2022, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (“NIST”) released an updated draft of its HIPAA Security Rule guidance. The draft guidance, titled “Implementing the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Security Rule: A Cybersecurity Resource Guide” (NIST Special Publication 800-66, Revision 2), is designed to assist HIPAA regulated entities “maintain the confidentiality, integrity and availability of electronic protected health information (ePHI).” NIST issued the updated draft guidance to align it with other NIST cybersecurity guidance documents that have been published since the original HIPAA Security Rule guidance was issued in 2008.

On July 22, 2022, T-Mobile entered into an agreement to settle a class action lawsuit stemming from its 2021 data breach. The breach involved the personal information of 76.6 million U.S. residents and was T-Mobile’s fifth breach over a four year period. The proposed settlement will require T-Mobile to pay $500 million to settle customers’ claims and to bolster its cybersecurity practices.  

On July 22, 2022, companies are required to notify the Arizona Department of Homeland Security when they experience a data breach impacting more than 1,000 Arizona residents. This notification requirement is in addition to obligations to notify affected individuals, the Arizona state attorney general and the three largest national consumer reporting agencies. The notification to the Arizona Department of Homeland Security must be made within “45 days after a determination that there has been unauthorized acquisition and access that materially compromises the security or ...

On July 1, 2022, amendments to Florida’s State Cybersecurity Act (the “Act”) took effect, imposing certain ransomware reporting obligations on state agencies, counties and municipalities and prohibiting those entities from paying cyber ransoms.

On June 30, 2022, the New York Office of the Attorney General (“NYOAG”) announced a $400,000 agreement with Wegmans Food Markets, Inc. (“Wegmans”) in connection with a cloud storage security issue. The NYOAG alleges that Wegmans exposed the personal information of three million consumers by storing the data in misconfigured cloud storage containers.

On June 21, 2022, President Biden signed into law, the State and Local Government Cybersecurity Act of 2021 (S. 2520) (the “Cybersecurity Act”) and the Federal Rotational Cyber Workforce Program Act (S. 1097) (the “Cyber Workforce Program Act”), two bipartisan bills aimed at enhancing the cybersecurity postures of the federal, state and local governments.

On June 24, 2022, the New York State Department of Financial Services (“NYDFS” or the “Department”) announced it had entered into a $5 million settlement with Carnival Corp. (“Carnival”), the world’s largest cruise-ship operator, for violations of the Cybersecurity Regulation (23 NYCRR Part 500) in connection with four cybersecurity events between 2019 and 2021, including two ransomware events.  

On April 29, 2022, the National Information Security Standardization Technical Committee of China issued a draft version of the Cybersecurity Standard Practice Guidelines – Technical Specification on Certification of Personal Information Cross-border Transfer Activities (the “Guidelines”). The public comment period for the Guidelines closed May 13, 2022. The Guidelines establish the basic requirements for personal information protection certifications, which are one of four cross-border transfer mechanisms permitted under Article 38 of China’s Personal Information Protection Law (“PIPL”).

On May 16, 2022, the U.S. Department of State, U.S. Department of Treasury and the Federal Bureau of Investigation issued combined guidance (“IT Workers Advisory”) on efforts by North Korean nationals to secure freelance engagements as remote information technology (“IT”) workers by posing as non-North Korea nationals. The IT Workers Advisory provides employers with detailed information on how North Korean IT workers operate; highlights red flag indicators for companies hiring freelance developers and for freelance and payment platforms to identify these workers; and provides general mitigation measures for companies to better protect against inadvertently engaging these workers or facilitating the operations of the North Korean government (“DPRK”) in violation of U.S. sanctions.

On May 27, 2022, Vermont Governor Phil Scott signed H.515, making Vermont the twenty-first state to enact legislation based on the National Association of Insurance Commissioners Insurance Data Security Model Law (“MDL-668”). The Vermont Insurance Data Security Law applies to “licensees”—those licensed, authorized to operate or registered, and those required to be licensed, authorized or registered, under Vermont insurance law, with few exceptions. The new law generally follows MDL-668’s provisions, adopting the model law’s broad definition of nonpublic information and requiring licensees to, in part, maintain a written information security program (“WISP”) and investigate cybersecurity incidents. Unlike other state laws based on MDL-668, however, the Vermont Insurance Data Security Law declines to establish separate cybersecurity event notification requirements for licensees.

On May 4-6, 2022, the California Privacy Protection Agency (“CPPA”) held via video conference several public pre-rulemaking stakeholder sessions regarding the California Privacy Rights Act (“CPRA”). During the sessions, stakeholders ranging from privacy and cybersecurity experts to trade associations and California small business owners provided verbal comments, insights and suggestions to the CPPA as it develops the forthcoming CPRA regulations. The sessions focused on a number of issues, including automated decision-making, data minimization and purpose limitation, dark patterns, consumers’ rights (e.g., opt-out rights, limitation on the use of sensitive personal information), and cybersecurity audits and risk assessments. Comments and positions taken amongst the stakeholders varied. Some of the positions taken by stakeholders are summarized below:

In April 2022, two states enacted insurance data security legislation based on the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (“NAIC”) Insurance Data Security Model Law (MDL-668). Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear signed HB 474 into law on April 8, 2022, and Maryland Governor Larry Hogan signed SB 207 into law on April 21, 2022. The new laws establish data security obligations for insurance carriers and generally require carriers to take the following actions, subject to certain exemptions:

On April 28, 2022, India issued new guidance relating to “information security practices, procedure, prevention, response and reporting of cyber incidents for Safe & Trusted Internet.” Notably, the guidance requires “service providers, intermediary, data centre, body corporate and Government organizations” to report cyber incidents to India's Computer Emergency Response Team (“CERT-In”) within six hours of noticing such incidents or being notified about such incidents. Before this guidance, notification of a cyber incident was required "within a reasonable time” after occurrence or discovery.

On April 5, 2022, North Carolina became the first state in the U.S. to prohibit state agencies and local government entities from paying a ransom following a ransomware attack.

North Carolina’s new law, which was passed as part of the state’s 2021-2022 budget appropriations, prohibits government entities from paying a ransom to an attacker who has encrypted their IT systems and subsequently offers to decrypt that data in exchange for payment. The law prohibits government entities from even communicating with the attacker, instead directing them to report the ransomware attack to the North Carolina Department of Information Technology in accordance with G.S. 143B‑1379.

On April 8, 2022, the Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) issued Cybersecurity in Medical Devices: Quality System Considerations and Content of Premarket Submissions, a draft guidance document for industry and FDA staff. Industry stakeholders will have until July 7, 2022 to comment on the proposed guidance.

On January 18, 2022, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed into law Assembly Bill No. 3950, requiring employers to provide written notice to employees prior to the use of tracking devices in vehicles used by employees (the “Act”). The Act will go into effect on April 18, 2022.

On March 29 and March 30, 2022, the California Privacy Protection Agency (“CPPA”) will hold public pre-rulemaking informational sessions regarding the California Privacy Rights Act (“CPRA”) via video conference. As we previously reported, the CPPA, which has rulemaking authority under the CPRA and will be responsible for implementing and enforcing the CPRA, recently estimated that it will not publish final CPRA regulations until the third or fourth quarter of 2022.

On March 15, 2022, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a proposed settlement with custom merchandise platform CafePress in connection with the company’s alleged failure to implement reasonable security measures, and its alleged attempt to cover up a 2019 data breach. The proposed settlement would require CafePress to implement a comprehensive data security program and pay $500,000 in redress to affected individuals.

On March 11, 2022, the U.S. Senate passed an omnibus spending bill that includes language which would require certain critical infrastructure owners and operators to notify the federal government of cybersecurity incidents in specified circumstances. The bill  previously was passed by the House of Representatives on March 9, 2022. President Biden is expected to sign the bill and has until March 15, 2022, to do so before the current spending authorization expires.

On March 9, 2022, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) held an open meeting and proposed new cybersecurity disclosure rules for public companies by a 3-1 vote. If adopted, the new rules would impose substantial new reporting obligations with respect to material cybersecurity incidents and cybersecurity risk management, strategy, and governance for both domestic and foreign private issuers subject to the reporting requirements under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

On March 2, 2022, the Senate unanimously passed the Strengthening American Cybersecurity Act of 2022 (“SACA” or the “Bill”). The Bill is now with the House of Representatives for a vote and, if passed, will be sent to President Biden’s desk for signature.

On January 4, 2022,  the Federal Trade Commission published a blog post reminding companies that “the duty to take reasonable steps to mitigate known software vulnerabilities implicates laws including, among others, the Federal Trade Commission Act and the Gramm Leach Bliley Act,” in response to Log4Shell’s public disclosure of the Log4j vulnerability. The blog post also calls for companies to take immediate steps to reduce the likelihood of harm to consumers that could result from the exposure of consumer data as a result of Log4j or similar known vulnerabilities.

On February 9, 2022, the SEC proposed new cybersecurity compliance and disclosure rules for the investment management industry in a three to one vote. If adopted, the proposed rules would apply to registered investment advisers (“RIAs”), certain registered investment companies (“RICs”) and business development companies (“BDCs,” together with RICs, “registered funds”).  Notably, the proposal would require RIAs to notify the SEC on a confidential basis within 48 hours of discovering a significant cybersecurity incident. The proposed rules represent the first of several rule proposals on cybersecurity that SEC Chair Gensler has indicated are forthcoming from the agency.

On November 14, 2021, the Cyberspace Administration of China (“CAC”) released for public comment its draft Regulations on Network Data Security Management (the “Draft Regulations”). The Draft Regulations are intended to implement portions of three existing laws – the Cybersecurity Law (“CSL”), the Data Security Law (“DSL”) and the Personal Information Protection Law (“PIPL”) (together, the “Three Laws”) – by providing guidance on certain provisions and establishing specific requirements for implementing certain principles contemplated in the Three Laws. In addition, the Draft Regulations add new requirements related to data processing activities. Once effective, the Draft Regulations will impose even greater compliance obligations on companies than the PIPL.

On January 14, 2022, the Russian Federal Security Service detained members of the REvil ransomware group at the request of the United States, according to public press reports.

On January 5, 2022, the New York Office of the Attorney General (“NY AG”) announced the results of an investigation into “credential stuffing,” which uncovered 1.1 million compromised accounts from cyberattacks on 17 well-known companies. The announcement included a “Business Guide for Credential Stuffing Attacks,” (the “Guide”) detailing the attacks and providing tips for businesses to protect themselves.

On December 2, 2021, the Transportation Security Administration (“TSA”) announced that it issued two security directives requiring higher-risk freight railroads, passenger rail and rail transit to implement measures to strengthen cybersecurity within the sector. In its press release, the TSA stated that it determined these requirements needed to be issued immediately to protect the transportation sector. The TSA also stated that it sought input from industry stakeholders and federal partners, including the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (“CISA”), in developing its approach.

On November 18, 2021, the Federal Reserve, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued a new rule regarding cyber incident reporting obligations for U.S. banks and service providers.

On November 14, 2021, the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced a bilateral cybersecurity partnership with the Israeli Ministry of Finance “to protect critical financial infrastructure and emerging technologies” and combat the use of ransomware. The initiative includes the launch of a U.S.-Israeli Task Force on Fintech Innovation and Cybersecurity (the “Task Force”), which seeks to advance the twin goals of encouraging fintech innovation while protecting against cyber threats from nation-state and criminal actors.

On November 5, 2021, the Federal Trade Commission suggested two preventative steps small businesses can take to protect against ransomware risks:

On November 3, 2021, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (“CISA”) announced Directive 22-01 - Reducing the Significant Risk of Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (the “Directive”), establishing a CISA-managed catalog of vulnerabilities and compelling federal agencies to remediate such vulnerabilities on government information systems. The Directive targets vulnerabilities that pose a significant risk to the federal government and applies to all software and hardware found on federal information systems, including those managed on an agency’s premises, as well as those hosted by third parties on an agency’s behalf. The Directive is the latest in a series of executive branch efforts to address U.S. cybersecurity in the public and private sectors.

On November 8, 2021, law enforcement agencies in both the United States and European Union announced that a series of actions, including a number of arrests, were taken against the Russia-linked ransomware group, “REvil.” The U.S. Department of Justice (the “DOJ”) unsealed documents relating to an August indictment against two individuals in Dallas for alleged involvement in REvil ransomware attacks against several U.S. businesses. The European authorities, Europol, also announced that police in Romania and South Korea had arrested five people alleged to be REvil affiliates.

On October 28, 2021, the European Parliament’s Committee on Industry, Research and Energy adopted a draft directive on cybersecurity (“NIS2 Directive”). The NIS2 Directive will broaden the scope of the existing NIS Directive to apply to “important sectors,” such as waste management, postal services, chemicals, food, medical device manufacturers, digital providers and producers of electronics, in addition to “essential sectors.” The NIS2 Directive imposes specific cybersecurity requirements relating to incident response, supply chain security, encryption and vulnerability disclosure obligations. The NIS2 Directive also aims to establish better cooperation and information sharing between EU Member States, and create a common European vulnerability database.

On October 29, 2021, the Cyberspace Administration of China (“CAC”) released for public comment “Draft Measures on Security Assessment of Cross-border Data Transfer” (“Draft Measures”). The CAC, in its third legislative attempt to build a cross-border data transfer mechanism in China, issued the Draft Measures three days before the November 1, 2021 effective date of the Personal Information Protection Law (“PIPL”).

On October 6, 2021, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco announced the launch of the new Civil Cyber-Fraud Initiative. Led by the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section, the initiative will seek to “utilize the False Claims Act (“FCA”) to pursue cybersecurity related fraud by government contractors and grant recipients.”

On September 28, 2021, Senators Gary Peters (D-MI) and Rob Portman (R-OH), Chairman and Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, respectively, introduced a bipartisan bill (the “Bill”) that would require owners and operators of critical infrastructure to notify the Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (“CISA”) within 72 hours of having a reasonable belief that a covered cyber incident has occurred. Additionally, the Bill would require most entities (including businesses with 50 or more employees) that make ransom payments following ransomware attacks to report those payments to the CISA within 24 hours of payment. Notably, any entity required to submit a ransom payment report would first be required to conduct a due diligence review of alternatives to paying ransom, including an analysis of whether recovery from the ransomware attack is possible through other means, before making such a ransom payment. Critical infrastructure owners and operators also would be required to provide supplemental reports to the CISA in light of new or different information becoming available. All entities subject to these requirements would face data preservation obligations.

On September 22, 2021, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas and Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo released a joint statement on the Department of Homeland Security’s (“DHS’s”) issuance of preliminary Critical Infrastructure Control Systems Cybersecurity Performance Goals and Objectives (the “Preliminary Goals”). As we previously reported, on July 28, 2021, the Biden Administration signed a National Security Memorandum on Improving Cybersecurity for Critical Infrastructure Control Systems (the “Memo”), which instructed DHS to lead the development of cybersecurity performance goals for critical infrastructure firms. The Memo described the initiative as “a voluntary, collaborative effort between the Federal Government and the critical infrastructure community to significantly improve the cybersecurity of these critical systems.”

On October 1, 2021, Connecticut’s two new data security laws become effective. As we previously reported, the new laws modify Connecticut’s existing breach notification requirements and establish a safe harbor from certain Connecticut Superior Court assessed damages for businesses that create and maintain a written cybersecurity program.

On September 14 and 15, 2021, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (“NIST”) held a public workshop, as part of its effort to create a consumer labeling program to communicate the security capabilities of consumer Internet of Things (“IoT”) devices and software development practices, as mandated by the Biden administration’s May 2021 Executive Order on Improving the Nation’s Cybersecurity. NIST, in coordination with the Federal Trade Commission  and other agencies, must identify the criteria and components of such a labeling program by February 6, 2022.

On September 21, 2021, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) issued an Updated Advisory on Potential Sanctions Risks for Facilitating Ransomware Payments (the “Updated Advisory”) on the sanctions risks associated with facilitating ransomware payments.

On August 30, 2021, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced that it had settled three administrative cases involving a total of eight registered broker-dealers and investment advisers for failures in their cybersecurity policies and procedures. These failures led to email account takeovers that exposed personal information of thousands of customers at each firm. The cases are In the Matter of Cetera Advisor Networks LLC, Release No. 34-92800; In the Matter of Cambridge Investment Research, Inc., Release No. 34-92806; and In the Matter of KMS Financial Services, Inc., Release No. 34-92807, August 30, 2021.

On August 16, 2021, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced that Pearson plc (“Pearson”), a publicly traded British multinational educational publishing and services company, agreed to pay a $1 million civil penalty in a settlement related to charges that Pearson misled investors about a 2018 data breach resulting in the theft of millions of student records. The SEC’s order found that Pearson made material misstatements and omissions about the data breach in a report furnished to the SEC and in a media statement.

On August 20, 2021, China’s 13^th Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress passed the Personal Information Protection Law (the “PIPL”). As we previously reported, the PIPL is China’s first comprehensive data protection law. It is modeled, in part, on other jurisdictions’ omnibus data protection regimes, including the EU General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”). The PIPL will become effective on November 1, 2021. Below are some of the key provisions under the PIPL.

On July 30, 2021, the UK High Court handed down its judgment in the case of Warren v DSG Retail Ltd [2021] EWHC 2168 (QB), determining that the claimant could not seek damages on the basis of misuse of personal information, breach of confidence or common law negligence following a data breach.

On July 31, 2021, Zoom Video Communications, Inc. (“Zoom” or the “Company”) agreed to pay $85 million to settle a class action suit that alleged the Company violated users’ privacy rights by misleading consumers about encryption security, sharing data through third-party integrations without adequate notice or consent, and failing to protect private meetings from being disturbed by “zoombombings.” Class members would be eligible to receive payment, regardless of whether they paid for a Zoom account.

On July 21, 2021, a bipartisan group of Senators introduced the Cyber Incident Notification Act of 2021 (the “Act”). The Act would require federal government agencies, federal contractors and operators of critical infrastructure to notify the federal government in the event of a cybersecurity incident.

On July 20, 2021, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (“DHS’s”) Transportation Security Administration (“TSA”) announced a new Security Directive (the “Second Directive”) requiring owners and operators of certain critical pipelines transporting hazardous liquids and natural gas to implement specific cybersecurity measures. This Second Directive builds on the TSA’s earlier directive of May 27, 2021, on which we previously reported.

Connecticut recently passed two cybersecurity laws that will become effective on October 1, 2021. The newly passed laws modify Connecticut’s existing breach notification requirements and establish a safe harbor for businesses that create and maintain a written cybersecurity program that complies with applicable state or federal law or industry-recognized security frameworks.

On July 28, 2021, President Biden signed a National Security Memorandum entitled “Improving Cybersecurity for Critical Infrastructure Control Systems” (the “Memorandum”). The Memorandum formally establishes an Industrial Control Systems Cybersecurity Initiative and directs the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (“CISA”) and the Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (“NIST”), in collaboration with other agencies, to develop and issue cybersecurity performance goals for critical infrastructure. The Memorandum follows recent high-profile attacks on U.S. critical infrastructure, including ransomware attacks on Colonial Pipeline and JBS Foods.

On July 13, 2021, federal bank regulators – the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the “Board”), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC”) (collectively, the “Regulators”) – requested public comment on proposed joint guidance regarding banking organizations’ management of risks related to relationships with third-party support and service providers (the “Proposed Guidance”). Each of the Regulators previously issued guidance on the subject for their respective supervised banking organizations. The Proposed Guidance seeks to promote consistency in banking organizations’ third-party risk management, replacing agency-specific guidance with a framework that applies to all banking organizations supervised by the Regulators. According to the Regulators, the Proposed Guidance largely would adopt the text of the OCC’s 2013 guidance, broadening its scope to include organizations supervised by all three Regulators.

On July 12, 2021, Chris Inglis was formally sworn in as the first White House National Cyber Director. The newly established position, as well as the Office of the National Cyber Director, was created as part of the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act. Inglis, who previously served as the National Security Agency Deputy Director, was unanimously confirmed to the position by the Senate on June 17, 2021.

Read more on the Office of the National Cyber Director.

On June 30, 2021, the New York State Department of Financial Services (“NYDFS,” the “Department”) issued guidance to all New York state regulated entities on ransomware (the “Guidance”), identifying controls it expects regulated companies to implement whenever possible.

After two rounds of public comments, the Data Security Law of the People’s Republic of China (the “DSL”) was formally issued on June 10, 2021, and will become effective on September 1, 2021.

Compared to previous drafts of the law, the final version of the DSL differs with respect to:

• establishing a work coordination mechanism and clarifying the duties of each governmental authority;
• establishing an administration system for state core data;
• encouraging data development and use to make public service more intelligent and requiring consideration of the needs of the elderly and people with disabilities when providing intelligent public services;
• protecting the security of government data; and
• increasing the punishment dynamics for violations of the law. 

On June 15, 2021, the SEC announced it settled charges against real estate services company First American Financial Corporation (“First American”) for alleged violation of Rule 13a-15(a) of the Exchange Act. The SEC charged First American with failure to maintain disclosure controls and procedures designed to ensure that all available, relevant information concerning a software vulnerability that led to a cybersecurity incident was filed with the Commission.

On May 25, 2021, the Centre for Information Policy Leadership (“CIPL”) at Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP submitted its response (in English and in Mandarin) to the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (“NPC”) of the People’s Republic of China on the updated version of the Draft Personal Information Protection Law (“PIPL”).

On May 27, 2021, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (“DHS”) Transportation Security Administration (“TSA”) announced a Security Directive (the “Directive”) that will impose new cybersecurity requirements on critical pipeline owners and operators.

On May 25, 2021, the Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) announced that it had reached a settlement with Peachstate Health Management, LLC (“Peachstate”) for violations of the HIPAA Security Rule. As part of this settlement, Peachstate (dba AEON Clinical Laboratories) agreed to pay OCR $25,000 and to implement a robust corrective action plan.

On May 10, 2021, the Ecuadorian National Assembly unanimously approved the Organic Law on Data Protection (the “Data Protection Law”), which President Moreno is expected to sign.

On May 12, 2021, President Biden signed an Executive Order on Improving the Nation’s Cybersecurity. The Order outlines a number of initiatives intended to improve cybersecurity in the U.S. and protect federal government networks, including:

On April 29, 2021, China issued a second draft version of the Data Security Law (“Draft DSL”). The Draft DSL will be open for public comments until May 28, 2021.

While the framework of this version of the Draft DSL is the same as the prior version issued on July 3, 2020, below we summarize the material changes in the second version of the Draft DSL.

On April 13, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”) executed a court-authorized removal of malicious web shells from hundreds of vulnerable computers in the U.S.

On April 12, 2021, the Biden administration announced it intends to nominate Chris Inglis, a former Deputy Director of the National Security Agency, to be the first U.S. National Cyber Director (“NCD”), subject to Senate confirmation. The newly established NCD position, which will serve as the President’s principal cybersecurity policy and strategy advisor, and the Office of the National Cyber Director (the “ONCD”) were created under the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (the “NDAA”), which became law on January 1, 2021.

On April 9, 2021, the First-Tier Tribunal of the General Regulatory Chamber stayed proceedings in Ticketmaster UK Limited’s (“Ticketmaster’s”) appeal against a fine issued by the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (“ICO”) until 28 days after a judgment in civil litigation brought by 795 customers against Ticketmaster. The group action, which relates to the breach for which Ticketmaster was fined by the ICO, is currently before the High Court in England. As a result of the stay in proceedings, the appeal likely will not be heard before the Tribunal until mid to late 2023.

On March 12, 2021, the Cyberspace Administration of China released Provisions on the “Scope of Necessary Personal Information Required for Common Types of Mobile Internet Applications” (the “Provisions”) (available here in Chinese).

On March 3, 2020, the New York Department of Financial Services (“NYDFS”) announced it had entered into a settlement with Residential Mortgage Services, Inc. (“RMS”) related to allegations that RMS violated the NYDFS Cybersecurity Regulation in connection with a 2019 data breach.

As reported on the Hunton Insurance Recovery blog, on February 4, 2021, the New York Department of Financial Services (“NYDFS”), which regulates the business of insurance in New York, has issued guidelines, in the Insurance Circular Letter No. 2 (2021) regarding “Cyber Insurance Risk Framework” (the “Guidelines”), calling on insurers to take more stringent measures in underwriting cyber risks. In the Guidelines, NYDFS cites the 2020 SolarWinds attack as an example of how managing growing cyber risk is “an urgent challenge for insurers.”

In the February 2021 issue of the Data Protection Leader, Hunton partner Dora Luo discusses China’s draft Personal Information Protection Law (“Draft PIPL”) (in Chinese) in the context of other comprehensive data protection frameworks, such as the EU General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”).

On February 16, 2021, the New York Department of Financial Services (“NYDFS”) issued a Cyber Fraud Alert (the “Alert”) to regulated entities in light of a growing campaign to steal Nonpublic Information (“NPI”), as defined under New York law, from public-facing websites that provide instant quotes for products like auto insurance (“Instant Quote Websites”).

On January 27, 2021, the French Data Protection Authority (the “CNIL”) announced (in French) that it imposed a fine of €150,000 on a data controller, and a fine of €75,000 on its data processor, for failure to implement adequate security measures to protect customers’ personal data against credential stuffing attacks on the website of the data controller. The CNIL decided not to make its decisions public, thereby not disclosing the name of the companies sanctioned.

Hunton attorneys Dora Luo and Yanchen Wang recently published a new Guidance Note for OneTrust DataGuidance on China’s data protection laws.

On December 1, 2020, the Cyberspace Administration of China released draft rules on the “Scope of Necessary Personal Information Required for Common Types of Mobile Internet Applications” (the “Draft Rules”) (in Chinese).

On November 24, 2020, a multistate coalition of Attorneys General announced that The Home Depot, Inc. (“Home Depot”) agreed to pay $17.5 million and implement a series of data security practices in response to a data breach the company experienced in 2014. The $17.5 million payment will be divided among the 46 participating states and the District of Colombia. We previously reported on a settlement Home Depot reached in 2017 to resolve a putative class action brought by financial institutions impacted by the 2014 data breach.

On November 17, 2020, the Senate passed by unanimous consent H.R. 1668, the Internet of Things (“IoT”) Cybersecurity Improvement Act (the “IoT Bill”). The House previously passed the IoT Bill in September after negotiations with the Senate to resolve differences in their respective bills. The IoT Bill now heads to the President’s desk for signature.

On November 18, 2020, the Centre for Information Policy Leadership (“CIPL”) at Hunton Andrews Kurth submitted its response to the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (“NPC”) of the People’s Republic of China on the Draft Personal Information Protection Law (“PIPL”).

On November 13, 2020, the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (“ICO”) fined Ticketmaster UK Limited (“Ticketmaster”) £1.25 million for failing to keep its customers’ personal data secure. The ICO found that Ticketmaster had failed to implement appropriate security measures to prevent a cyber attack, breaching the requirements of Articles 5(1)(f) and 32 of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”). The ICO acted as the lead supervisory authority with regard to the cross-border processing affected by this breach, and the penalty has been approved by the other EU data protection authorities through the GDPR’s cooperation process. Ticketmaster has indicated that it will appeal the fine.

On October 21, 2020, China issued a draft of Personal Information Protection Law (“Draft PIPL”) for public comments. The Draft PIPL marks the introduction of a comprehensive system for the protection of personal information in China.

On October 1, 2020, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) issued an advisory alerting companies of potential sanctions risks related to facilitating ransomware payments.  The five-page advisory states that ransomware victims who pay ransom amounts, and third-party companies that negotiate or pay ransom on their behalf, “not only encourage future ransomware payment demands but also may risk violating OFAC regulations.”

On July 30, 2020, the Council of the European Union (the “Council”) imposed for the first time restrictive measures against six individuals and three entities responsible for or involved in various cyber attacks, including the “WannaCry,” “NotPetya” and “Operation Cloud Hopper” attacks and the attack against the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. Sanctions imposed by the Council include a travel ban, an asset freeze and a prohibition against making funds available to the sanctioned EU individuals and entities.

On Wednesday, July 22, the New York Department of Financial Services (the “NYDFS”) announced that it had filed administrative charges against First American Title Insurance Co. under the NYDFS Cybersecurity Regulation, marking the agency’s first enforcement action since the rules went into effect in March 2017.

Pakistan’s Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication recently introduced a new draft of Pakistan’s Personal Data Protection Bill, 2020 (the “Bill”) and launched a public consultation regarding the same. The public consultation period will end on May 15, 2020. The Bill, which applies to “any person who processes” or “has control over or authorizes the processing of” any personal data, if the data subject, the controller or processor are located in Pakistan, would establish certain requirements and restrictions related to the processing of personal data, as well as penalties for violating the law. In addition, under the Bill, the federal government would, within six months of coming into force, establish a Personal Data Protection Authority of Pakistan with rulemaking authority to enforce the act.

In a “Ten Years Hence” speaker series hosted by the University of Notre Dame, Lisa Sotto, Chair of Hunton Andrews Kurth’s global Privacy and Cybersecurity practice, highlights why privacy and cybersecurity will remain relevant issues now and for decades to come in a lecture on Privacy and Cybersecurity: The New Frontier.

In the final segment of an S4x20 video on Cybersecurity Law and Governance, Lisa Sotto, Chair of Hunton Andrews Kurth’s Privacy and Cybersecurity practice, explains what effective cybersecurity oversight looks like for a company board of directors. While boards may have paid lip service to cyber risk a decade ago, they moved the issue to the top of their radar screen in the wake of CEO terminations resulting from cyber attacks. Sotto addresses responsible oversight by boards and offers best practice recommendations for preparedness efforts. She warns that boards that ignore ...

The Cyberspace Administration of China (“CAC”), together with 11 other authorities, has jointly issued the Measures for Cybersecurity Review (the “Measures”), which will take effect on June 1, 2020, and the currently-effective Measures for Examining the Security of Network Products and Services will be repealed simultaneously.

In part 2 of an S4x20 video on Cybersecurity Law and Governance, Lisa Sotto, Chair of Hunton Andrews Kurth’s Privacy and Cybersecurity practice, addresses the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (“SEC’s”) expectations of public companies with respect to robust and timely disclosures of cyber incidents and risks. Despite being inactive in the early years of cybersecurity incidents, the SEC is now quite active in pursing appropriate cybersecurity disclosure, and the agency formed a cyber unit in 2018. In this video, Sotto highlights the uptick in enforcement ...

In Part 1 of an S4x20 video on Cybersecurity Law and Governance, Lisa Sotto, Chair of Hunton Andrews Kurth’s Privacy and Cybersecurity practice, speaks to cyber risk as one of the top risk issues for senior executives in the current digital landscape.

On April 3, 2020, the Brazilian Senate approved Bill of Law (“PL 1179/2020”), which includes a number of emergency measures intended to address the COVID-19 pandemic. Importantly, one provision delays the effective date of the Brazilian Data Protection Law (Lei Geral de Proteção de Dados Pessoais, “LGPD”) until January 2021. Fines and sanctions for companies that fail to comply with the LGPD are now scheduled to become effective August 2021.

Listen as Phyllis H. Marcus, partner at Hunton Andrews Kurth and Co-Chair of the ABA Antitrust Law Section’s Privacy and Information Security Committee, speaks about the privacy concerns over using smart devices on the ABA’s Our Curious Amalgam podcast, Is Your Assistant Spying on You? Understanding the Privacy Law Issues Involving In-Home Assistants.

In GIR’s recently published Guide to Cyber Investigations, Hunton Andrews Kurth partner Aaron Simpson and associate Adam Solomon are featured as contributing authors to the chapter on Complying with Breach Notification Obligations in a Global Setting: A Legal Perspective.

On March 21, 2020, the data security provisions of New York’s Stop Hacks and Improve Electronic Data Security Act (“SHIELD Act”) went into effect. The SHIELD Act requires any person or business owning or licensing computerized data that includes the private information of a resident of New York (“covered business”) to implement and maintain reasonable safeguards to protect the security, confidentiality and integrity of the private information.

On March 1, 2020, the Provisions on the Governance of Network Information Content Ecology (the “Provisions”) took effect. The Provisions govern China’s network information content ecology—including content producers (the “Producers”), content service platforms (the “Platforms”), content service users (the “Users”), industry organizations and Departments of Cyberspace Administration at all levels.