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ARTICLE · 30 DECEMBER 2020

2020 In Review: Ongoing Enforcement Actions And A Patchwork Of Privacy Laws

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Throughout 2020 we saw many enforcement actions brought by EU and U.S. regulators. Whether for allegations of deception (misleading privacy representations)...

GlobalPrivacy
Liisa Thomas
Liisa Thomas
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Throughout 2020 we saw many enforcement actions brought by EU and U.S. regulators. Whether for allegations of deception (misleading privacy representations) or unfairness (failure to protect information), COVID did not appear to slow down regulatory action. Laws that many companies forget about -or don't know as well- were enforced by regulators, as well as through class action lawsuits. This included the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, Illinois's Biometric Information Privacy Act, and the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.

There are other laws that create a patchwork of requirements for organizations. They range from laws based on the type of entity (HIPAA, GLBA), to those that regulate the activities in which the entity engages (CAN-SPAM, TCPA), and laws designed to protect individuals from whom the company is collecting information (COPPA, FERPA).

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