Recent news about serious data breaches is increasing public anxiety about data security. There are many data breach bills in Congress, but most of them would actually the rights that consumers already have under their state laws. A federal law will only be helpful to consumers if it provides them with greaterprivacy and security protection than they have today.
The Consumer Privacy Protection Act of 2015 sponsored by Representatives David Cicilline, John Conyers, Jr., Judy Chu, Sheila Jackson Lee, Hank Johnson, Michael Capuano, Mark Takano, John Garamendi, Alan Grayson, André Carson, Mark DeSaulnier, and Jerrold Nadler takes the right approach. A companion bill to S. 1158 sponsored by Senators Leahy, Blumenthal, Franken, Markey, Warren and Wyden, this legislation requires companies to implement privacy and data security programs to prevent consumers’ sensitive personal information from being compromised in the first place. Consumer Federation of America (CFA) believes that inadequate data security is the most important aspect of the data breach problem for Congress to address.
The bill also requires prompt notice to consumers and law enforcement agencies if there is a breach of that data. It provides for strong penalties and enforcement. Importantly, it creates a baseline for data protection at the federal level, only preempting state laws to the extent that they offer less stringent protection.
Consumer Federation of America supports this legislation because it effectively addresses the problem of data insecurity and provides the comprehensive protection that consumers need and want. We urge the members of the House of Representatives to pass this bill as quickly as possible.
Contact: Susan Grant, sgrant@consumerfed.org
The Consumer Federation of America is a national organization of more than 250 nonprofit consumer groups that was founded in 1968 to advance the consumer interest through research, advocacy, and education.