If you are a data broker or a business that relies on data brokers for targeted advertising, you should be aware that the California Data Broker Law may be significantly changed under a proposed bill. Under Senate Bill 362, the California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA) would be required to set up, by 1 January 2026, an accessible deletion mechanism where consumers could request deletion via the CPPA that all data brokers then have to honor. Data brokers would have to check the CPPA mechanism to process all deletion requests every 31 days, as well as delete personal information about every California resident who ever made a request through the mechanism every 31 days.

So far this year, three US states have passed laws with specific obligations related to consumer health privacy law: Washington, Connecticut, and Nevada. When it comes to California, the omnibus California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) applies also to the processing of health information. But, if the sectoral Confidentiality of Medical Information Act (CMIA) applies and is complied with, CMIA, and not the CCPA, applies.

Companies around the world should start preparing for the Iowa Consumer Data Protection Act with respect to personal data of consumers in Iowa. With the Iowa Act, Iowa follows the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018, as amended by the California Consumer Rights Act of 2020, but excludes consumers acting in a commercial or employment context. Businesses that have implemented measures to comply with the CCPA and other US state privacy laws can leverage some of their existing vendor contract terms, website disclosures and data subject rights response processes to satisfy requirements under the Iowa Act. The Iowa Act becomes effective January 1, 2025 and does not include a look-back period for violations.

Having to click through a gauntlet of screens to cancel recurring subscriptions. Being told you are foolish if you decline a service. Discovering you were charged extra fees that were not clearly brought to your attention earlier. Finding it hard or confusing to configure your privacy settings to high. These and similar experiences arise when you encounter “dark patterns”, a term that US authorities are increasingly using to refer to interface design strategies that manipulate users into making choices they likely wouldn’t have otherwise made and that may cause harm.