Coming on the heels of several high profile data breaches,
lawmakers in the Bay State have turned their attention to
evaluating and improving cybersecurity across the Commonwealth. The
State Legislature has created a special committee on cybersecurity
readiness and is working its way through several bills on data
privacy and security (see below). In addition, Governor Baker has
established a new department devoted to information technology,
titled the "Executive Office of Technology Services and
Security."
Current Regulations
The Commonwealth's data security regulations are currently
governed by 201 CMR 17.00. Taking effect in March of 2010,
the "Standards for the Protection of Personal Information of
Residents of the Commonwealth," established minimum standards
for safeguarding personal information (PI) of residents in both
paper and electronic records. The standards require owners or
licensees of PI concerning a resident to develop a comprehensive
information
