Alston & Bird Issues Advisory on Applying GDPR Experience to CCPA Implementation
Posted on: 03 Oct 2018
Alston & Bird recently issued an advisory entitled, “Applying GDPR Process Lessons to the CCPA,” authored by Jim Harvey and Karen Sanzaro. The recently and hastily adopted California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (CCPA) has already been compared to the General Data Protection Act (GDPR), though the two greatly differ in scope and content. However, there are valuable insights to glean from the GDPR adoption process that can give companies a heads start on implementing the CCPA. The advisory examines these five lessons from which companies can learn: Leadership and multidisciplinary […] Read more
DOJ Releases “Best Practices for Victim Response and Reporting of Cyber Incidents,” Version 2.0
Posted on: 02 Oct 2018
On September 27, 2018, the Department of Justice Computer Crime and Intellectual Property (CCIPS) Cybersecurity Unit released Version 2.0 of its “Best Practices for Victim Response and Reporting of Cyber Incidents.” Originally issued in 2015, the updated guidance seeks to help organizations better equip themselves to be able to respond effectively and lawfully to cyber incidents. The updated version distills insights from private and public sector experts, incorporating new incident response considerations in light of technical and legal developments in the past three years. While the guidance […] Read more
Ohio Enacts Cybersecurity Safe Harbor Law
Posted on: 20 Sep 2018
Ohio recently enacted the Ohio Data Protection Act (2018 SB 220), a law that offers a breach litigation safe harbor to businesses meeting specific cybersecurity standards. While the law does not prevent a plaintiff from filing a lawsuit following a data breach, it does provide an affirmative defense to companies defending themselves against such claims. If an entity’s data security policies conform to one of several listed cybersecurity frameworks, the entity can invoke the safe harbor as a defense, and possibly defeat a tort claim alleging that the company’s failure to comply with reasonable […] Read more
GDPR Fragmentation May Appear More Significant than Intended
Posted on: 26 Jun 2018
With the entry into application of the GDPR on May 25, 2018, the EU Member States were expected to have adopted national legislation implementing the regulation. To date, however, only 30% of Member States have effectively passed legislation, which still leaves the legal landscape to be precarious. The GDPR allows for deviations and specifications in several areas, for instance to introduce specific conditions or limitations for the processing of biometric, genetic, or health data; to create specific protection regimes for employee data; or to restrict the rights the GDPR grants to individuals. […] Read more
EU Supervisory Authorities Disclose DPO Notification Tools
Posted on: 17 Jun 2018
Shortly after the GDPR’s entry into application on May 25, 2018, several EU Supervisory Authorities have activated online Data Protection Officer (“DPO”) notification tools, allowing organizations to communicate the contact details of their DPO to the Supervisory Authorities, which is a requirement under Article 37 GDPR. While the DPO Guidelines of the Article 29 Working Party (“WP29”; replaced by the European Data Protection Board, “EDPB”) do not emphasize the requirement to notify DPOs, Supervisory Authorities (“SAs”) view these notifications as important, and have made available […] Read more
Alston & Bird Named to ATL Top Law Firm Privacy Practice Index
Posted on: 04 May 2018
Alston & Bird’s Privacy & Data Security Team has been named to the first-annual Above The Law (ATL) Top Law Firm Privacy Practice Index. Firms named to the Index were rated by nearly 300 in-house counsel on the “strength and quality” of their data privacy and/or cybersecurity practices. ATL also assessed firms on thought leadership in the area of privacy through their publication of white papers, blogging, media contributions, and speaking engagements. To read more about the Index, click here. […] Read more
Belgian Privacy Commission Issues DPIA “Black” and “White List” Recommendation
Posted on: 03 May 2018
On February 28, 2018, the Belgian Privacy Commission issued a recommendation on the position it takes with regard to data protection impact assessments (or “DPIAs”) as foreseen in the GDPR. A DPIA under the GDPR is similar in scope and impact to its predecessor, the PIA (or “privacy impact assessment”) and requires businesses to assess processing operations that are likely to present a high risk to individuals’ rights. Such “high risk” is, for instance, likely to present itself in processing operations involving sensitive data, systematic monitoring, or vulnerable individuals such […] Read more
Belgian Court Uses Novel Argument to Assume International Jurisdiction over Non-EU Facebook Entities
Posted on: 21 Mar 2018
On February 16, 2018, the Brussels Court of First Instance rendered a judgment in proceedings brought by the Belgian Privacy Commission’s against Facebook. The case forms one part of two-tiered litigation brought by the Commission in regards to alleged monitoring practices vis-à-vis Belgian internet users. In parallel to the proceedings that resulted in the judgment cited above, the Belgian Privacy Commission had also initiated a procedure referred to as “summary proceedings” against Facebook – and Facebook defeated the Privacy Commission’s claim before the Brussels Court of Appeal in […] Read more
Privacy & Data Security Team Launches Unique GDPR Tracker Website
Posted on: 08 Feb 2018
“To Harmonize or Not To Harmonize: That Is the Question.” With the the GDPR fast approaching on May 25, 2018, European Member States are getting ready with the implementation of national legislation. Although the GDPR is a regulation, and directly applicable in all Member States, it has left room for country-specific legislation in several different regards (such as the processing of employee data or individual rights restrictions). Most Member States still only have draft legislation at this point, but the expectation (or at least intention) is that each country will have adopted legislation […] Read more
Data Protection Litigation to Become a New Reality in Belgium
Posted on: 22 Dec 2017
On November 16, 2017 the Belgian Senate adopted an “Act on the Establishment of the Data Protection Authority” (the “Act”). Following Austria, Germany, and the UK, Belgium is the fourth EU Member State to pass a domestic statute implementing the General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679 (“GDPR”) prior to its effective date of 25 May 2018. The new Belgian Act sets forth the structure and legal organization of the Data Protection Authority (“DPA”), which will serve as the successor of the current Belgian Privacy Commission. More importantly, the Act significantly broadens the DPA’s […] Read more