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Joseph J. Lazzarotti is a principal in the Tampa, Florida, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. He founded and currently co-leads the firm's Privacy, Data and Cybersecurity practice group, edits the firm’s Privacy Blog, and is a Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP) with the International Association of Privacy Professionals. Trained as an employee benefits lawyer, focused on compliance, Joe also is a member of the firm’s Employee Benefits practice group.

In short, his practice focuses on the matrix of laws governing the privacy, security, and management of data, as well as the impact and regulation of social media. He also counsels companies on compliance, fiduciary, taxation, and administrative matters with respect to employee benefit plans.

On August 17, 2022, New York announced an amendment to the Continuing Legal Education (CLE) Program Rules, which adds a requirement for attorneys to complete at least one CLE credit hour in Cybersecurity, Privacy, and Data Protection as part of fulfilling their CLE requirements.

New York barred attorneys will be required to comply starting July

A $300,640 settlement announced yesterday by the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) provides important reminders about HIPAA Privacy Rule and data privacy practices generally: robust data disposal practices are critical and “protected health information” (PHI) is not limited to diagnosis or particularly sensitive information.

The OCR’s settlement involved a New England dermatology practice that reported

On August 11, 2022, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced proposed rulemaking pertaining to “commercial surveillance and lax data security.”  However, the overall focus of the potential rulemaking is consumer privacy and data security. The FTC states in its notice that its “extensive enforcement and policy work over the last couple of decades on consumer

While the federal government attempts to move forward with a more uniform national law, Connecticut joined California, Colorado, Utah, and Virginia in passing a comprehensive consumer privacy law.

The legislation signed by Connecticut’s governor in May 2022, will take effect on July 1, 2023. However, provisions related to a task

In response to the United States Supreme Court decision in Dobbs vs. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, President Joe Biden signed an Executive Order on Friday, July 8, 2022, designed to protect access to reproductive health care services. In addition to measures seeking to safeguard access to abortion and contraception, the Executive Order includes provisions

At the start of June, the California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA), the agency tasked with implementing and enforcing the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA) which amended the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), voted to begin the rulemaking process.

On July 8, 2022, the CPPA officially began the formal rule-making process to adopt proposed regulations

The federal government has been trying to reach a consensus on data privacy and thus far has failed to pass legislation. On June 3, 2022, a bipartisan draft bill, titled the American Data Privacy and Protection Act was released by the Committee on Energy and Commerce. The bill intends to provide comprehensive data privacy

At the California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA) Board meeting on June 8, 2022, the board voted to begin the rulemaking process. The Board previously released a 66-page draft of regulations, that are intended to implement and interpret the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA). While

On June 8, 2022, the California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA) Board, will meet to discuss and take potential action regarding a draft of its proposed regulations. The June 8th public meeting includes an agenda item where the CPPA Board will consider “possible action regarding proposed regulations … including possible notice of proposed action.”

Organizations attacked with ransomware have a bevy of decisions to make, very quickly! One of those decisions is whether to pay the ransom. Earlier this year, I had the honor of contributing to a two-part series, entitled Ransomware: To pay or not to pay? (Part 1 and Part 2). Joined by Danielle Gardiner