Privacy & Cybersecurity Update - July 2019

New York Enacts Two Laws Expanding Consumer Protection for Data Breaches

On July 25, 2019, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed two bills into law that enhance the rights of state residents in the event of a data breach.

New Yorkers will soon have increased rights if they find their personal information has been compromised. The Stop Hacks and Improve Electronic Data Security Act (SHIELD Act)¹ expands the definition of personal information to which data breach reporting requirements apply and requires companies to use reasonable measures to protect private information. The second measure, known as the Identity Theft Prevention and Mitigation Services Act², requires consumer credit reporting agencies that suffer a data breach involving Social Security numbers to provide five years of identity theft protection to affected consumers.