The Proposed Massachusetts Information Privacy And Security Act: Will This Be The Year

Since Massachusetts becoming a trailblazer among states with the
passage of privacy legislation in 2007 and subsequent regulations, Massachusetts’ own privacy
laws have been passed by those of other states, most notably
California.  The proposed Massachusetts Information Privacy and Security
Act (“MIPSA”) would bring Massachusetts back to
the forefront of state regulation of privacy and data security.

The 65 page long bill would, among other things, give
Massachusetts residents the right to opt out of having their
personal information sold and having advertising targeted to them,
and would create a right to limit how companies can use and share
things like location data, biometric data and racial data, the
committee said. Opt-in consent would be required to sell the
personal information of people 16 or younger. 
 Massachusetts residents would also get the right to access,
delete, correct or transport personal information that companies
collect and maintain about them.

Many of the bill’s requirements on businesses would apply
only if an entity either has global revenue of at least $25 million
per year, processes personal information of at least 100,000
Massachusetts residents, or is a data broker that collects and
sells sensitive or personal information of at least 10,000
Massachusetts residents.  Massachusetts business should not
panic, as they will have time to come into compliance:  as
currently written, the law would not go into effect until 18 months
after its passage.

And the bill is far from becoming law:  it still needs to
clear additional committees, and both branches of the Legislature,
and then be signed by Governor Baker. But after many years of
moving back in the pack, it looks like Massachusetts is trying to
regain its place as leader in privacy and security regulation.

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