Privacy

California is considering banning the use of "reverse search warrants," which compel tech companies to disclose the identities of individuals based on the location of their phone and internet search history. Abortion activists call it vital.

The California Privacy Protection Agency is currently drafting regulations sought by voters in 2020 that, if done effectively, will increase transparency for algorithms and help consumers opt out of automated decision-making. But the law is under attack from tech giants and special interest groups.

Many school districts have limited or no dedicated cybersecurity teams. With no statewide standards, districts make their own decisions about cybersecurity measures.

A first-in-in the nation bill that would protect kids’ privacy online passed out of the California Legislature. Here’s what it does, and what happens next.

The California Privacy Protection Agency is implementing the seminal new privacy law passed by voters. State residents can weigh in on whether to put privacy and safety before automakers’ profits as the agency drafts rules on personal car data.

Hospitals, public health agencies and other providers have no systematic way to share patient data among themselves, limiting their ability to monitor trends and work efficiently. Under the state’s new data-sharing requirement, a doctor or case worker could get immediate access to a patient’s full medical history, and patients could view their own records easily.

Until more is understood about data privacy policies, California needs to put the brakes on adding new requirements that harm businesses.

The agency has not held a pre-rulemaking public hearing or shared any draft regulations for the public to comment on.

California has no plans to administer a passport. But the state is sending mixed messages to businesses about the need to verify that people at large events are vaccinated.

California worked with social media companies, created an internal database and developed threat levels to fight 2020 election misinformation.