Earlier this month, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued guidance on an individual’s right to access the individual’s health information. That an individual has a broad right to access has been recognized in the HIPAA privacy regulations since they became effective in 2003. OCR has found, however, that individuals are facing obstacles to accessing
Reasonable Data Security Defined by California AG
Last week, California Attorney General, Kamala D. Harris – who has been mentioned as a potential nominee to fill Justice Antonin Scalia’s recently vacated seat on the U.S. Supreme Court – issued the California Data Breach Report (Report). The Report provides an analysis of the data breaches reported to the California AG from 2012-2015.
Federal Agencies Offer Guidance on Sharing Information About Cyber Threats
The federal Departments of Homeland Security, Defense and Justice and The Office of the Director of National Intelligence issued guidance on the implementation of the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act of 2015 (CISA). Among the four guidance documents issued by these agencies is one outlining the ways non-federal entities (which would include private employers) can
Identity Theft is the First of the IRS’ “Dirty Dozen” Tax Scams of 2016
Each year at the beginning of tax season, the IRS releases the “Dirty Dozen,” a list of twelve tax scams to be mindful of when individuals are filing their taxes. This list is something to consider sharing with colleagues or friends within your organization.
The first member of the 2016 Dirty Dozen is
FDA Issues Draft Guidance for Connected Medical Devices
Demonstrating a continued focus on information security, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published draft guidance on Design Considerations and Pre-market Submission Recommendations for Interoperable Medical Devices. As the title indicates, the draft guidance focuses on issues manufacturers should address in the development and design of medical devices prior to sale to consumers. This
The Status of the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield
As we previously reported, the EU and U.S. reached agreement last week on the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield to replace the invalidated EU-U.S. Safe Harbor Program for transatlantic data transfers. While the announcement of the Privacy Shield is a relief to the thousands of companies who relied on the Safe Harbor Program, details remain unclear.
President Seeks $19 Billion and Creates a Commission to Address Cybersecurity
President Barack Obama requested $19 billion in his budget for 2017 to address cybersecurity in the United States, $5 billion more than was budgeted for the current year. Today, he issued an Executive Order that will create a commission within the Department of Commerce to be known as the “Commission on Enhancing National Cybersecurity.”
So,
New Safe Harbor Framework!
Compliance and privacy officials all over the U.S. just let out a breath they had been holding since last October when the European Court of Justice invalidated the US/EU Safe Harbor Program. BNA is reporting that negotiators just reached an agreement on a new data transfer framework between the U.S. and the European Union. Details
Safe Harbor Resolution…Not So Fast
UPDATE: Although we previously reported that a possible Safe Harbor resolution may be imminent, Bloomberg BNA is now reporting that a European Commission official has told them there may be no deal today to replace the U.S.-EU Safe Harbor Program.
According to BNA, when European Commissioner for Justice, Consumers and Gender Equality Justice Vera
Top 10 for 2016 – Happy Data Privacy Day
In honor of Data Privacy Day, we provide the following “Top 10 for 2016.” While the list is by no means exhaustive, it does provide some hot topics for organizations to consider in 2016.
EU/U.S. Data Transfer (status of Safe Harbor). On October 6, 2015, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled