As privacy conversations become mainstream, data protection laws gain traction
February 2, 2024 – Published on Route Fifty
New Jersey became the latest state to formalize comprehensive consumer data privacy protections amid congressional inaction on the topic in January.
Under the bill, consumers must be notified of the collection and disclosure to third parties of their personal data by certain entities, including websites and online services. They can opt out, or they can request details about what data is being collected so that they can have it corrected or deleted.
Websites, services and other entities subject to the new law must limit the collection of personal data only to what is deemed “adequate, relevant and reasonably necessary to their business,” and they must specify why personal data is being gathered. Anyone that collects data and sells it must post a link allowing customers to opt out in a prominent and accessible place on their website.
The law—praised for its nuanced approach—makes New Jersey the 13th state to adopt a data privacy law, with the legislation set to go into effect on Jan. 15, 2025. Similar laws in Montana, Oregon and Texas go into effect this year, with several more to follow in subsequent years as lawmakers look to get the issue of their residents’ data privacy under control as the issue eludes Congress.
And while some have raised concerns about a patchwork of privacy laws that create a compliance nightmare for businesses, other observers are less pessimistic. Jason Eddinger, a senior security consultant for data privacy at software company GuidePoint Security, said the number of similarities between the bills shows that no one has “gone rogue,” and makes it easier for businesses to comply with them all.
That includes providing consumers transparency about how their data is used and how they can control that use, as well as requirements for websites’ privacy policies, including what data they are allowed to collect and how they communicate that to the public. Differences remain, however, including the threshold of liability that companies and governments face if they violate the law, but much of the substance is similar.
“When you look at these laws, you could be overwhelmed by the volume,” he said. “But when you read them, it’s really not as bad as it looks, because legislators are clearly reaching out to their peers and other states, they’re clearly reading the laws that have passed and the ones that haven’t, and they’re picking what works for their state and tailoring it as needed.”
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