Importance of Data Privacy from Senate Commerce Committee Hearing This Week

The Senate Commerce Committee heard testimony on Wednesday concerning consumer data privacy from a distinguished panel that included Alastair Mactaggart and Andrea Jelinek. The hearing featured information about the regulation of privacy in both the European Union under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and in California under the upcoming California Consumer Privacy Act.

Among the topics that were discussed were the need for federal preemption, what powers the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) would need to enforce the new law (if it was the right agency), the justifications for particular sections of the CCPA that have been criticized, and Europe’s efforts to improve privacy under GDPR. However, for those businesses that may be considering adopting privacy technology to improve transparency and user control of data privacy through consent management independent of the regulations, the following quotations from the panelists begin to describe why businesses must be improving their data privacy:

Laura Moy, Executive Director of the Center on Privacy & Technology at Georgetown Law:

“When information is not sufficiently protected, Americans cannot fully trust the digital environment. But as privacy scholars writing on the importance of trust as an element of privacy policymaking have explained, ‘trust drives commerce and it creates the conditions for intimacy and free expression. If we want to flourish as humans, we must be able to trust each other.'”

Nuala O’Connor, President and CEO of Center for Democracy and Technology:

“The lack of of an overarching privacy law has resulted in the regular collection and use of data in ways that are unavoidable, have surprised users, and resulted in real-world harm.”

Andrea Jelinek, Head of the Austrian Data Protection Authority and the Chair of the European Data Protection Board:

“One of the main goals of the GDPR was actually to enable a more functional information economy within the EU with more transparency for citizens, which should lead to more trust. Companies should be allowed to continue to use and share data, as long as they do so in a transparent and lawful manner, respecting the rights of individuals. The key lies in establishing an equilibrium between the respect of personal data and the commercial use of data collection and management.”

Alastair Mactaggart, Board Chair of Californians for Consumer Privacy:

“CCPA is not anti-business. It was, on the contrary, written and proposed by business people concerned that regulations were needed; that as in so many previous situations, whether of the giant trusts of a century and more ago, or of the telephone and related wiretapping concerns, or cigarettes and health, or autos and safety, this latest technology too, has outpaced society’s ability to fully comprehend it yet, or its impact on all of us.”

EU GDPR
– GDPR Compliance
– Consent Management Software
– GDPR Data Mapping Software
– DSAR Portal
– GDPR Text

ePrivacy
– Cookie Scanner
– Cookie Banner Generator
– Cookie Consent Manager
– ePrivacy Regulation

California Consumer Privacy Act
– CCPA Summary
– CCPA vs GDPR
– CCPA Privacy Software
– CCPA Webinar

Federal Privacy Laws
– Pending Congress Bills

Privacy News
– Clarip Blog