Class action lawsuits surrounding cybersecurity breaches have risen significantly in recent years and 2024 was no exception, lawyers said during a Practising Law Institute event Thursday. Speakers discussed trends from 2024 concerning litigation about data privacy, cybersecurity breaches and the Telephone Consumer Privacy Act.
Biometric Privacy
Biometric privacy laws regulate how companies handle sensitive personal identifiers like facial scans, fingerprints and voiceprints. In the U.S., Illinois’ BIPA has led to landmark litigation and multimillion-dollar settlements, setting a precedent for consent, data retention and security standards. Other states and countries are following suit with their own biometric requirements. This page covers key lawsuits, regulatory action and compliance best practices in the biometrics space.
Video telematics and fleet management products provider Lytx denied violating the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) in an email Wednesday following settlement of a class-action lawsuit over the company's driver-monitoring technologies (see 2501210054).
New York state health data privacy legislation could soon hit the governor’s desk after the Assembly and Senate quickly passed bills this week. Despite Republican opposition on the Assembly floor Wednesday, members voted 95-41 to pass S-929, the Senate version that was substituted forA-2141. The effectively same bills have been compared to Washington state’s My Health My Data law. The Senate passed S-929 on Tuesday after bypassing its committee process (see 2501210068). Republicans and the Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA) raised concerns with the legislation, which is supported by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).
Video telematics and fleet management products provider Lytx must pay $4.25 million as part of a settlement with truck drivers over its alleged violation of the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA), according to last week’s ruling (case 22-00046) in U.S. District Court for Southern Illinois.
The 15th Texas Court of Appeals ruled last week that Google is allowed to question Texas officials in a lawsuit alleging that the corporation unlawfully collected biometric privacy data of millions of Texas residents without their consent.
A proposed Missouri Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) would include a private right of action. State Sen. Nick Schroer (R) proposed SB-118 on Wednesday.
Biometric and genetic privacy bills emerged in Hawaii and Montana on Wednesday.
The FTC on Thursday announced its long-awaited update to children’s online privacy rules, which includes new opt-in consent requirements and data retention limits.
It's unclear how the U.S. Supreme Court will rule in a case involving a Texas law aimed at preventing minors from accessing adult websites, but a majority of the justices during oral argument Wednesday signaled their concern over minors’ access to obscene materials.
Colorado will step in if the federal government pulls back on privacy enforcement under the second Trump administration, the state’s AG Phil Weiser (D) told Privacy Daily. In an interview, he said privacy will continue to be a priority for the state in 2025, with Weiser hoping to raise awareness with businesses and consumers about their duties and rights under the Colorado Privacy Act (CPA).