CA passes bill to protect consumer data

California lawmakers passed the California Consumer Privacy Act, which includes new restrictions on the data-mining practices of Facebook, Google, Amazon, and other tech companies. The rules, which go into effect in 2020, require tech companies to disclose the kind of data they collect about consumers and allow consumers to stop companies from selling their data to third parties, including advertisers.

This bill is an important step in the right direction, but it only applies to California residents. However, the bill could spur broader action. “I think it’s going to set the standard across the country that legislatures will look to adopt in their own states,” state senator Bob Hertzberg (D) told the Washington Post.

The CA bill comes amid concerns about Facebook and other tech companies’ consumer data-collecting and data-selling practices. News that Facebook failed to protect the data of more than 50 million of its users led to April congressional hearings, in which federal lawmakers raised serious concerns about the user data Facebook shares to turn a profit. Then an investigation by the New York Times found that Facebook has data-sharing partnerships with at least 60 phone and electronic device makers, raising new questions about the scale of personal data Facebook shares.

Freedom From Facebook, a new coalition, has launched a petition demanding the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) curb Facebook’s power. Specifically, the coalition’s petition urges the regulators to “spin off Instagram, WhatsApps, and Messenger into competing networks, require interoperability, so we have the freedom to communicate across social networks, and impose strong privacy rules that empower and protect us.” You can read the full petition at freedomfromfb.com

Link:

California legislators just adopted tough new privacy rules targeting Facebook, Google and other tech giants (Washington Post, June 28, 2018)

In hearings before Congress, Zuckerberg can’t name single Facebook competitor (Speed Matters, Apr. 13, 2018)

Facebook shared user data with device-makers, raising new data privacy concerns (Speed Matters, June 6, 2018)

Facebook shared user data with device-makers, raising new data privacy concerns (Speed Matters, June 6, 2018)