Hello Friends,
The deadline for public consultation on digital data protection has been extended until January 2.
And
The Republic of Slovenia adopted the Personal Data Protection Act.
Enjoy reading!
Privacy Enforcement
EPIC Games to pay $520M over Privacy and Billing claims
Federal Trade Commission, fined EPIC Games, the video game maker of Fortnite, 520 million dollars for collecting personal information on Fortnite players under the age of 13 without informing their parents or getting their consent. The company is also refunding $245m to customers who fell victim to so-called “dark patterns” and billing practices. It is the biggest penalty ever issued for breaking an FTC rule.
California Dentist fined $23,000 for HIPAA Violations
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights entered a settlement with a California dentist over violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act Privacy Rule. Violations stemmed from the provider’s inappropriate use of social media to respond to patient reviews and disclosure of patients’ protected health information. The practice, New Vision Dental, was fined $23,000 and is required to implement a corrective action plan.
Data Breach
Data Breach at McGraw Hill exposed Student’s Personal Data
A data breach at education publishing company McGraw Hill may have exposed “hundreds of thousands” of college students' emails and grades. VpnMentor discovered the breach in June and tried to contact the company for months. Researchers “found troves of data ‘apparently belonging to McGraw Hill’ that were available to anyone with a web browser.” McGraw Hill said routine testing uncovered the breach, but the company had not seen any adverse effects.
Table Tennis Players have PII leaked from ITTF Server
Hundreds of professional table tennis players had passport information and vaccination certificates leaked online following a “security issue” on an International Table Tennis Federation server. An ITTF spokesperson said access to the leaked information was secured as soon as the federation was alerted.
Privacy in Spotlight
DCMS Secretary: Children’s Protections at ‘heart’ of Online Safety Bill
In an open letter to parents, caregivers, and guardians, U.K. Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Secretary of State Michelle Donelan said protections for children online are at the "heart" of the proposed Online Safety Bill. Under the bill making its way through Parliament, social media companies will be forced to protect their users, or face billion-pound fines and the potential blocking of their sites in the U.K., Donelan said. The regulation, she said, is intended to shield younger users from content that is illegal or causes serious trauma.
Regulations
MeitY extends Public Comment Period on Draft Data Protection Bill
India's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology extended the public consultation period on the draft Digital Personal Data Protection Bill, 2022 to January 2, 2023. The ministry released the bill on November 18 and the original feedback period was scheduled to end on December 17. The ministry said it was extended in response to the requests received from several stakeholders.
Slovenia passes Personal Data Protection Act
The Republic of Slovenia’s National Assembly, the Drzavni Zbor, voted 50-8 to adopt the Personal Data Protection Act. The legislation “transposes” the EU General Data Protection Regulation into Slovenian, as the country met all the requirements to fully implement the GDPR. The law, written in Article 38 of the country's constitution, covers human rights including the protection of personal data, the ability to access personal data collected by companies, and judicial redress for the mishandling of one’s personal data.
Omnibus Bill includes TikTok Ban on Government Smartphones
The $1.65 trillion omnibus spending bill for the fiscal year 2023 expands a ban on TikTok on federal smartphones with concerns user data could be shared with the Chinese government. Federal departments, including the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Transportation Security Administration, have already imposed bans on TikTok on government-issued smartphones. TikTok has said user data is protected and is not shared with the Chinese government.