?? 2024-W45: Data Broker Sells Voter Data, U.S. Court Revives Video Privacy Lawsuit and more
Eli Atanasov, CIPP/E, PhD
?? I help businesses put their privacy compliance on autopilot, saving them time and money in the process.
Hi privacy navigators,
Here is the latest from the ???Privacy Navigator ?- your one-stop destination for everything privacy. Another week full of news and resources passed by.
In today’s edition:
Data Broker Sells Voter Data on Support for QAnon and January 6
What happened
L2 Data, a prominent political data company, is offering a voter database that identifies Americans based on their support for right-wing militias, the QAnon conspiracy theory, and the January 6 insurrection.
This dataset represents a new direction in campaign technology and raises national security concerns. L2 gathers this information by surveying voters and extrapolating probable views of similar groups using voter records and consumer data.
The company’s dataset, covering a broad spectrum of political opinions, is available for purchase by various political entities. According to FEC filings, politicians like Rep. Rob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Rep. Bob Good (R-Va.) have bought L2’s data, but there’s no evidence they used it to target individuals supportive of extremism.
Some experts argue that such data could help identify individuals prone to political violence and mitigate risks. However, there is significant concern about the availability of this data to non-American campaigns and potential misuse.
Experts, including Rhiannon Neilsen from Baruch College, warn that this type of data could be exploited by hostile foreign governments or domestic actors to reinforce extremist beliefs and spread targeted disinformation. The company’s executive vice president, Paul Westcott, did not name specific clients but stated that “thousands” of organizations use their voter models.
Read more here.
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U.S. Court Revives Video Privacy Lawsuit Against NBA
What happened
On October 21, 2024, a U.S. appeals court revived a class action lawsuit against the NBA, which had been accused of allowing Facebook to collect personal datafrom viewers of its online videos without consent.
Michael Salazar, who subscribed to the NBA’s email newsletter, claimed the NBA shared his data with Facebook, violating the Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA). The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Salazar, as a newsletter subscriber who provided personal data like email and IP addresses, qualified as a “consumer” under the VPPA.
The NBA argued that the 1988 VPPA only applies to consumers who rent, purchase, or subscribe specifically to video content, not to those who watch free videos. They likened it to a hardware store scenario where only customers who bought items could sue under the VPPA for watching free instructional videos, not those who watched without buying anything.
Despite the NBA’s arguments, the court decided the VPPA’s definition of “consumer” is broad and relevant to modern digital interactions, emphasizing that privacy protections are still strong today. Salazar’s case will return to U.S. District Judge Jennifer Rochon for further proceedings.
Read more here .
EDPB Releases First Report on EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework
What happened
The European Data Protection Board (EDPB) has published its comprehensive review of the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework (DPF). The report focuses on ensuring robust data transfer practices and the EU and U.S.
Key highlights include:
See the Report here .?
That's all for now, see you next week!
Eli
email:?[email protected]