Google's nearly $1.4 billion settlement with Texas solidifies the state's status as an aggressive privacy enforcer, lawyers and consumer privacy advocates said Monday. Texas announced the settlement Friday in a case involving Google's allegedly unlawful tracking and collection of users' personal information, including geolocation and biometric data (see 2505090071).
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) announced a nearly $1.4 billion settlement with Google in a case about the company's unlawful tracking and collecting of user's personal information, including geolocation and biometric data. Paxton filed the lawsuit against Google in October 2022, alleging violations of the Texas Capture or Use of Biometric Identifier Act (see 2210200075).
Incorporating children's and teen safety into privacy has led to a variety of approaches under state law, said two Latham Watkins attorneys on a panel at the Privacy + Security Forum spring academy Friday. An age-gate is the best way for companies to ensure compliance with all of them, they added.
Employing reasonable practices and security measures can help companies comply with the multitude of state privacy laws, said HP and Maryland attorneys during a panel at the Privacy + Security Forum Spring Academy on Thursday.
Implementing cookie banners is no longer one-size-fits-all and should be tailored to applicable state laws, said a panelist during the Privacy + Security Forum spring academy on Wednesday.
Using consent to preserve privacy has pros and cons, said panelists at the Privacy + Security Forum Spring Academy Wednesday. However, ensuring that consent is gained effectively and truthfully is one of the best ways to safeguard information, they added.
Collaboration is needed among tech industry experts, parents, legislators and others in the conversation about protecting children online, said Alabama lawmakers at a House State Government Committee hearing Tuesday. The panel agreed to work on an app store age-verification bill (SB-187) over the summer and bring back an updated bill next session.
Louisiana legislators on Monday cleared privacy legislation requiring app stores to verify ages. Also at the House Commerce Committee hearing, the sponsor of a bill on protecting genomic data voluntarily deferred her own measure.
A disconnect exists between legislatures, the privacy laws they create and the litigation that results from them, said panelists during a Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) event on privacy litigation trends Thursday. Instead, this ecosystem results in great confusion, prompting a rise in privacy law-related cases, they said.
Privacy and data are at the heart of larger concerns about rights and freedoms, and consumers and corporations need to be clearer about their knowledge, understanding and intent around data collection and use, said data experts during a Tuesday webinar that privacy compliance vendor TrustArc hosted.