Commoditization of Data is the Problem, Not the Solution – Why Placing a Price Tag on Personal Information May Harm Rather Than Protect Consumer Privacy
This guest post is by Lokke Moerel, a Professor of Global ICT Law at Tilburg University and Senior of Counsel at Morrison & Foerster in Berlin, and Christine Lyon, partner at Morrison & Foerster in Palo Alto, California. To learn more about FPF in Europe, please visit https://fpf.org/eu. By Lokke Moerel and Christine Lyon[1] Friend and […]
Supreme Court Rules that LGBTQ Employees Deserve Workplace Protections–More Progress is Needed to Combat Unfairness and Disparity
Authors: Katelyn Ringrose (Christopher Wolf Diversity Law Fellow) and Dr. Sara Jordan (Policy Counsel, Artificial Intelligence and Ethics) Today’s Supreme Court ruling in Bostock v. Clayton County—clarifying that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act bans employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity—is a major victory in the fight for LGBTQ […]
Associated Press: Schools debate whether to detail positive tests for athletes
In a recent article published by the Associated Press in The Washington Post and The New York Times, the Future of Privacy Forum warns of the privacy risks of sharing information about positive COVID-19 tests among students, particularly student athletes who have already returned to campus to prepare for the upcoming sports season. Read an excerpt […]
A Landmark Ruling in Brazil: Paving the Way for Considering Data Protection as an Autonomous Fundamental Right
Authors: Bruno Ricardo Bioni and Renato Leite Monteiro A historic ruling of the Brazilian Supreme Court from May 07, 2020 describes the right to data protection as an autonomous right stemming from the Brazilian Constitution. By a significant majority, 10 votes to 1, the Court halted the effectiveness of the Presidential Executive Order (MP[1] 954/2020) […]
Endgame Issues: New Brookings Report on Paths to Federal Privacy Legislation
Authors: Stacey Gray, Senior Counsel (US Legislation and Policymaker Education), Polly Sanderson, Policy Counsel This afternoon, The Brookings Institution released a new report, Bridging the gaps: A path forward to federal privacy legislation, a comprehensive analysis of the most challenging obstacles to Congress passing a comprehensive federal privacy law. The report includes a detailed range […]
Thermal Imaging as Pandemic Exit Strategy: Limitations, Use Cases and Privacy Implications
Authors: Hannah Schaller, Gabriela Zanfir-Fortuna, and Rachele Hendricks-Sturrup Around the world, governments, companies, and other entities are either using or planning to rely on thermal imaging as an integral part of their strategy to reopen economies. The announced purpose of using this technology is to detect potential cases of COVID-19 and filter out individuals in […]
Bipartisan Privacy Bill Would Govern Exposure Notification Services
Authors: Stacey Gray, Senior Counsel; Katelyn Ringrose, Christopher Wolf Diversity Law Fellow; and Polly Sanderson, Policy Counsel Yesterday, Senators Cantwell (D-WA), Cassidy (R-LA), and Klobuchar (D-MN) introduced a new COVID-19 data protection bill, the Exposure Notification Privacy Act, which would create legal limits for “automated exposure notification services.” The bill comes on the heels of […]
New Infographic Illustrates Key Aspects of Location Data
Today, the Future of Privacy Forum (FPF) published an infographic, “The World of Geolocation Data” that outlines how location data is generated from mobile devices, who has access to it, and factors to consider in evaluating privacy risks. Data from our mobile devices, including smartphones and fitness trackers, can serve as a proxy for where […]
Understanding the "World of Geolocation Data"
How is location data generated from mobile devices, who gets access to it, and how? As debates over companies and public health authorities using device data to address the current global pandemic continue, it is more important than ever for policymakers and regulators to understand the practical basics of how mobile operating systems work, how […]
FPF CEO: Will I Install an Exposure Notification App? Thoughts on the Apple-Google API
As a privacy expert, if my local health department develops a mobile app for people with a COVID diagnosis to alert anyone they were near, will I use it? Yes, I will. And I will urge friends, neighbors and colleagues to download such an app. I have an immuno-compromised family member in my household. I am […]