The changing face of data protection in the USA

At the beginning of 2024, the United States will experience a significant change in its data protection legislation. Two states, New Jersey and New Hampshire, are playing a prominent role in reshaping the American data privacy landscape. In this blog, we will take an in-depth look at the specifics of New Jersey's Senate Bill 332 and New Hampshire's Senate Bill 255, examining their key elements and the potential impact on privacy standards.

New Jersey's Senate Bill 332: A big step forward

On January 16, 2024, Senate Bill 332 was signed into law by New Jersey's governor, marking a historic step in the area of state data privacy. This comprehensive law introduces several key elements:

1 Consumer Rights: The law grants New Jersey residents the right to access and delete their personal information and to opt out of the sale of their information.

2. data protection standards: It sets out strict requirements for data security and prescribes rapid notification procedures in the event of data breaches.

3. obligations for companies: Companies that process personal data must implement transparent data practices and keep records of data processing activities.

4. enforcement and penalties: The law empowers government authorities to enforce these regulations, with significant penalties for non-compliance, to ensure that companies take data protection seriously.

New Hampshire's Senate Bill 255: Sets new standards

Shortly thereafter, New Hampshire's Senate Bill 255, after passing the Senate, has been awaiting the Governor's signature. This bill also introduces several groundbreaking provisions:

1. consumer consent: unlike New Jersey's law, this law emphasizes consumer consent prior to data collection and provides individuals with greater control over their personal information.

2. data minimization principle: it promotes the principle of collecting only the data necessary for the intended purpose in order to limit excessive data collection.

3. transfer of data to third parties: The law strictly regulates the transfer of data to third parties and requires explicit consumer consent and transparency in such transactions.

4. right to rectification: Unique to this law is the right for consumers to request corrections to their inaccurate or incomplete personal data.

Comparative analysis

Similarities:
Both laws reflect a growing concern for the privacy of individuals and set a precedent for other states. They give consumers more control over their personal data and place greater demands on companies when processing such data.

Differences:

- Approach to consent: New Jersey's law focuses more on post-collection rights such as access and deletion, while New Hampshire emphasizes pre-consent.

- Data minimization and rectification: New Hampshire takes a more rigorous approach by implementing data minimization and the right to rectification, which are not explicitly covered in New Jersey's law.

Conclusion

The passage of these laws marks a turning point in the US data privacy landscape. New Jersey and New Hampshire are not only reforming data protection standards at state level