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Yesterday, Crowell & Moring hosted an International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP) KnowledgeNet featuring the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) new Chief Technologist, Lorrie Cranor.

In her short time at the FTC, Cranor has already made waves by encouraging companies to rethink mandatory password changes.  At the event, Cranor spoke about the focus of her …

Uncertainty surrounding the U.S.-EU Safe Harbor (Safe Harbor) replacement, the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield (Privacy Shield), will remain for now. On April 13, 2016 the European Union (EU) Article 29 Working Party (WP29) comprised of all 28 EU member state data protection authorities (DPAs) announced its official but non-binding opinion on the European Commission’s (EC) draft…

On Tuesday, the FTC simultaneously released a “Mobile Health App Interactive Tool” and “Best Practices,” to help mobile health app developers navigate the maze of federal regulation, including data privacy regulation.  The tool walks developers through a series of high level questions about the nature of their app, and uses the …

FCC Adopts a NPRM for Privacy Proposal; FTC Chairwoman Wants IoT Threat Addressed; Consumer Reports Hit with Privacy Class Action; DOJ Accesses Shooter’s Phone and Drops Apple Suit

FCC Adopts a NPRM for Privacy Proposal

On Thursday, March 31 in a 3-2 party-line vote, the FCC advanced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for broadband privacy. The proposed rules would restrict ISP’s use of basic consumer data and require consumer consent for certain types of data collection.  Although ISPs under the rule could still collect basic consumer data to market communications- related services to subscribers, ISPs would have to allow users to opt-out of that data collection.  On the other hand, ISPs would have to allow used to opt-in to the use and sharing of other types of data, such as browsing history and physical location.  Under the proposed rules, providers are also required to share how data is used or shared with consumers.  Some have criticized the proposed rules, arguing that they have the potential to create an uneven enforcement regime as companies have the potential to face varied FCC and FTC standards.

FTC Chairwoman Wants IoT Threat Addressed

On Thursday, March 31, FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez urged manufacturers of Internet of Things (IoT) devices to “design devices that take into consideration unexpected uses of their IoT data, and the potential for misuse.” In a speech at the American Bar Association’s conference on IoT in Washington, DC, Chairwoman Ramirez outlined a series of steps that she recommends manufacturers take as they develop new IoT technology.  Drawing on common privacy practices, Chairwoman Ramirez advised manufacturers to provide consumers with clear notice of data collection practices and to allow consumers to opt in or out of particular data collection practices.  She also encouraged manufacturers to build security into devices from the outset and keep track of issues through a device’s life cycle.   The FTC plans to hold a series of workshops this fall to look at a series of issues arising from new technology, such as smart televisions and UAVs.Continue Reading Privacy & Cybersecurity Weekly News Update

OCR Launches Next Round of HIPAA Audits; French Privacy Office Levies € 100,000 Fine on Google; SEC Reaches $18 Million Settlement for Alleged Hacker-Trader Conspiracy; FTC and Canadian Regulator Execute Anti-Spam MOU; FTC Commissioner Announces She Will Step Down

OCR Launches Next Round of HIPAA Audits

Last Monday, following much anticipation, the Department of Health and Human Services OCR announced Phase 2 of its audit program to measure compliance with the patient privacy provisions of HIPAA. This audit follows OCR’s pilot audit of 115 Covered Entities and will likely examine 200 additional Covered Entities. For more information about what entities can expect, read Elliot Golding’s March 23 post.

French Privacy Office Levies € 100,000 Fine on Google

The French data protection authority (CNIL), one of the most active privacy regulators in Europe, fined Google € 100,000 for “failure to comply with the obligation to respect the rights of individuals to erase data” under the European “right to be forgotten.”  In May 2014, the European Court of Justice ruled that the compilation of Google search result links were “data processing,” and, as such, search engines should remove links at the request of data subjects.  The CNIL faulted Google for only removing links from searches that originated from EU IP address and not delisting all “Google Search” extensions.

SEC Reaches $18 Million Settlement for Alleged Hacker-Trader Conspiracy

The SEC secured settlements, totaling almost $18 million, with seven defendants accused of participating in a scheme to trade on hacked newswire information. These seven defendants are part of a larger alleged scheme of 32 defendants who, over five years, hacked newswires to obtain earnings announcements before they were released and then distributed and traded on those stolen statements. The government has also brought a parallel criminal action against some of the 32 defendants in the District of New Jersey and has stayed a massive civil suit based on the same hacking scheme.  The $18 million in recent SEC settlements come on the heels of a $4.2 million SEC settlement with Concorde Bermuda Ltd., also accused of taking part in the scheme.Continue Reading Privacy & Cybersecurity Weekly News Update

The Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) Office of Civil Rights (“OCR”) has finally announced it is starting Phase 2 of its audit program.  OCR previously conducted a pilot audit of 115 Covered Entities in 2011-2012 to assess controls and processes.  Building on that experience, OCR will target approximately 200 Covered Entities and Business Associates in Phase 2.  Here is what entities can expect:

What: The audits will largely be “paper” reviews of policies and procedures, but will also include some on-site visits.  OCR indicates that it is “enhancing” its prior audit protocol, which OCR has already edited, based on changes in the Omnibus Rule.  OCR will first conduct desk audits of Covered Entities followed by a second round of desk audits for Business Associates (though these audits may also include site visits). A third set of audits will be conducted primarily onsite and will consider a broader range of issues than covered with the desk audits.  Some entities subject to a desk audit will also receive an onsite audit.  The audits will cover HIPAA only, not state privacy and security rules.

How: If selected for a desk audit, the timeline will generally be: (1) entities have 10 business days to provide requested documents electronically through a secure portal; (2) OCR will prepare draft findings; (3) auditees will have 10 business days to review and return written comments to OCR regarding the draft findings; and (4) OCR will complete a final audit report within 30 days of receiving comments back from the auditee.  Onsite audits will be more comprehensive than desk audits and will typically last 3-5 days.  In Phase 1 of the audit program, OCR typically provided 30-90 days advanced notice, but has not indicated how much notice will be provided for Phase 2.  Like desk audits, onsite auditees will have an opportunity to respond to OCR’s preliminary findings before a final report is prepared.  Continue Reading OCR Announces Phase 2 of HIPAA Audits

OCR Announces a Settlement … Again; HHS Eases Restrictions on Mental Health Information Sharing to Facilitate Gun Control Efforts; Facebook: Users Lack Standing in Cookie MDL; Plaintiffs Argue for Summary Judgment in $5 Million Twitter TCPA Suit

OCR Announces a Settlement … Again

For the second time this week, OCR announced another huge settlement. The…

FTC Settles IoT Enforcement Action; HHS Releases HIPAA/NIST Crosswalk; HHS Provides FAQs on Patient Fees for PHI Release; Judicial Redress Act Becomes Law

FTC Identifies Reasonable Security Measures Through IoT Enforcement Action

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) settled charges with ASUSTek Computer, Inc. (ASUS), a manufacturer of home router and home networking (or “home cloud”) equipment, related to the security of the devices. According to the settlement, ASUS advertised that its home routers and networking equipment could protect the connected computers “from any unauthorized access, hacking, and virus attacks.” The FTC alleged, however, that ASUS did not secure data in a reasonable way and instead exposed consumers to hackers. The settlement emphasizes the FTC’s interest in securing devices connected to the Internet of Things (IoT) and provides additional guidance regarding the FTC’s view of “reasonable” security.Continue Reading Privacy & Cybersecurity Weekly News Update

California AG Defines “Reasonable Security;” Apple Opposes FBI Hack Request; Russia to Enforce Data Localization with (Surprise) Audits; HHS Helps Health App Developers Determine if Subject to HIPAA; Carrier IQ Agrees to $9M Data Leak Settlement

California AG Defines “Reasonable Security”

California Attorney General (AG) Kamala Harris published the 2016 “California Data Breach Report,” which lays out what the state believes to be “reasonable security” for the purpose of California’s law that requires protecting personal information.

This is the first time California has recommended an external industry standard as a baseline “reasonable security” requirement. According to the California AG, the chosen standard (Center for Internet Security’s (CIS) Critical Security Controls (formerly known as the SANS Top 20)), is a consensus list of the “best defensive controls to detect, prevent, respond to, and mitigate damage from cyber attacks,” and is updated periodically to keep up with technology. The FTC has previously recommended using industry standards, but did not go as far as California in prescribing a particular one.Continue Reading Privacy & Cybersecurity Weekly News Update