Data Privacy

Utah Poised to Block Porn on Smartphones

The bill, awaiting a signature from Gov. Spencer Cox, would require smartphones and tablets in the state to automatically enable filters for content deemed "harmful to minors."

  • By Kate Elizabeth Queram

For States’ Covid Contact Tracing Apps, Privacy Tops Utility

Nearly half the states have or are planning to launch a digital contact tracing system, but critics say the technology has overemphasized privacy at the cost of usefulness.

  • By Lindsey Van Ness, Stateline

How Planning to Protect Data Privacy Helped One State’s Covid-19 Response

By creating standardized data sharing agreements that cover privacy issues unique to each state agency, Indiana officials say they were able to streamline requests to share data with the public.

  • By Andrea Noble

Senate Still Divided on Comprehensive Data Privacy Legislation

Though recent bills are similar, lawmakers have yet to resolve two polarizing issues: preemption and private right to action.

  • By Mila Jasper

City Ban on Business Use of Facial Recognition Tech Said to Be a First

Elected leaders in Portland, Oregon approved the measure this week.

  • By Bill Lucia

Would You Sacrifice Your Privacy to Get Out of Quarantine?

The coronavirus has reignited the post-9/11 debate about security and civil liberties. The U.S. response to that tragedy has lessons for how to manage the trade-offs this time around.

  • By Mike Giglio, The Atlantic

How California’s Consumer Privacy Act Will Become the Digital Law of the Land

Under the law, the onus is on consumers to request that companies disclose or delete their personal data. But more states and the federal government could still jump into the privacy debate.

  • By Andrea Noble

Poll: Americans Distrust Government Collection of Data

Americans are more likely to view the collection of their data by the government as a risk than a benefit.

  • By Andrea Noble

Does L.A.’s Scooter Data Program Violate State Privacy Laws?

As more cities adopt a controversial scooter tracking system pioneered by Los Angeles, concerns about rider data privacy are spreading.

  • By Laura Bliss, CityLab

People Are Starting to Realize How Voice Assistants Actually Work

The secrecy surrounding AI products makes even basic information about them a scandal.

  • By Sidney Fussell, The Atlantic

States Back Off on New Data Privacy Laws

A lot of state legislators sought to follow California in imposing new regulations on consumer data privacy. In most states, they didn't make it that far.

  • By Tim Henderson

Lawmakers Want You to Know How Much Your Data Is Worth to Tech Companies

COMMENTARY | But it's not an easy number to calculate.

  • By Samuel Lengen, The Conversation
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Digital Driver’s Licenses Could Become a Real Option in Some States

Several states have run pilots for digital driver’s licenses, which would allow residents to supplement plastic ID cards with smartphone apps. But as the technology becomes more of a reality, experts are worried about the privacy implications.

  • By Emma Coleman

Big Tech Surveillance Could Damage Democracy

COMMENTARY | Oversight and regulation may seem dramatic and anti-growth at the moment, but it is a necessary check on big tech.

  • By Chase Johnson, The Conversation

Are We Having The Right Privacy Conversations?

COMMENTARY | How we value our privacy has a lot to do with what we get in return. This is true in both the private and public sector.

  • By Kjeld Lindsted

Why Data Privacy is a Matter of Economic Justice

COMMENTARY | Congress may pass federal privacy laws to prevent a patchwork of state laws from arising. That's important for low-income Americans.

  • By Michele Gilman, The Conversation

Inside One Lawmaker's Proposal for a Privacy Bill of Rights

U.S. Sen. Ed Markey’s, D-Mass., sweeping privacy framework would limit the amount of data companies collect on users and require more transparency about how it’s being used.

  • By Jack Corrigan

A Patchwork of Privacy Laws Will Stifle Innovation

COMMENTARY | The president of the Consumer Technology Association says California's privacy law—along with proposed legislation in Washington state and Massachusetts—will create a tangle of rules that "stifle competition and choke small businesses."

  • By Gary Shapiro

Without a Federal Privacy Law, States Are Left to Figure Out How to Protect Consumer Data

Representatives of the technology industry, and some state officials, say having broad privacy laws in each state could curb innovation. But other states leaders argue intervention is necessary to protect consumers.

  • By Dave Nyczepir

Government Watchdog Urges Congress to Start Moving on a Privacy Law

GAO researchers recommended lawmakers give regulators more power to write rules and punish the companies that break them.

  • By Jack Corrigan

When Regulating New Tech Harms Public Safety

COMMENTARY | Facial recognition technology is new and nascent, but not a departure from the innate abilities humans are born with. Efforts by states to limit its use harms public safety and deters innovation.

  • By Carl Szabo