State privacy laws often fail to protect consumer data, report finds
Since 2018, 44 states have considered enacting privacy laws
(InvestigateTV) — The U.S. Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) and the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) found in their recent “State of Privacy” report that out of 14 states that have passed consumer privacy bills, almost half of them received a failing grade.
PIRG Consumer Privacy Director R.J. Cross said their goal is to help consumers avoid being exposed to a data breach or hack.
“A lot of times, everything that you do online, ends up in the hands of hundreds of companies that you didn’t even realize could see what you’re doing online,” Cross explained.
According to Cross, an increasing number of states are passing laws that aim to protect data, but many don’t go far enough.
“States right now are unfortunately passing really industry friendly laws, laws that are so industry friendly,” she noted. “They really don’t do much to protect the consumers that they’re supposed to be protecting.”
The “State of Privacy” report focuses on several states’ laws that still allow data like contact information, email address, phone numbers, and browsing history to remain easily accessible to targeted advertisers.
That information in the wrong hands opens the door to fraud.
“Scammers and identity thieves love to have as much of your information as possible. We’re seeing a lot of scams are becoming increasingly hyper targeted – using people that you love’s names and trying to make it so you can send them money,” Cross warned. “These scams are getting really big, and they get more and more effective the more data about your life is out there.”
Of the eight states given a passing grade in the report, none earned an “A” and only one – California – earned above a “B.”
Since publishing the report, Maryland passed into law the Maryland Online Data Privacy Act, which Cross hailed as a huge victory for consumers.
“Tech lobbyists have successfully weakened legislation in states across the country, but not in Maryland,” Cross commented. “We applaud Governor Moore and state lawmakers for standing up to industry pressure and bucking the trend.
Vermont is also considering a state privacy bill.
Vermont State Representative Monique Priestley said she keeps data privacy top of mind. She recently participated in a legislative hearing with lawmakers from other states to discuss privacy bills and big tech companies.
“I think the only way that we can kind of stand up to the voices that are in the building trying to get what they want, which is to protect their profits, is by talking both to the public, so the public understands what’s at risk and what their legislators are up against with lobbying efforts,” Cross said.
Without the protection of strong state of federal privacy laws, Cross said there are things consumers can do now to protect their online privacy:
Be wary of blindly accepting cookies from websites
“Some of those cookies are not necessary and a lot of them are actually being used to harvest your data and send it to third party companies that you’ve never heard of,” Cross warned. “It’s not your fault if you didn’t know this was a thing but it’s been a very well-hidden secret for a very long time.’
Read the fine print of loyalty programs
“Maybe it’s best to avoid loyalty programs for some of the biggest companies because a lot of times, your data is going to get collected and used for stuff that you aren’t really aware of,” Cross cautioned.
Be mindful of data collection on phone apps
Apps can share sensitive data, so be sure to check settings and make an informed decision before downloading and installing.
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