In early June, the Cyberspace Administration of China released for public comment new draft regulations applicable to the collection of personal information relating to children under 14 by online service providers. The draft regulations share many of the same structures as those utilized by the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”) in the United States: online service operators will have to obtain parental consent based on a comprehensive disclosure about the collection, use, and retention…

As Massachusetts lawmakers consider whether to legalize sports betting, professional athletes fear that their biometric data – which can be collected and analyzed as part of their training – could become a commodity in this form of gambling. Professional sports leagues say that they have no plans to make this data available for gamblers, but the use of biometric data from wearable health devices is not covered by health privacy laws. Partner Colin Zick discusses…

The California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”) has been lauded as a “huge step forward” that could set a standard for other states and the federal government that enact increasingly robust data privacy legislation.  Indeed, some federal lawmakers view the law so favorably that they do not want future federal legislation to replace it. In the words of Rep. Jackie Speier (D-Calif.) to Politico: “California’s bill is the best. Why would we want…

On May 9, 2019, a coalition of consumer groups submitted a complaint to the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) regarding Amazon’s Echo Dot Kids Edition, arguing that the device runs afoul of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”).  The Echo Dot Kids Edition is a child-focused version of Amazon’s popular voice-activated smart speaker device that utilizes Amazon’s Alexa digital assistant. The complaint alleges a host of COPPA violations, such as: (1) insufficient privacy notices,…

Ransomware attacks are the biggest data breach threat facing nursing facilities and other healthcare institutions, a new Bloomberg investigation finds. “Part of the reason individuals are so vulnerable is that they receive so many emails that each one isn’t carefully reviewed,” partner Colin Zick said. Click here to read the full article on McKnight’s.…