DataBreaches.Net

Menu
  • About
  • Breach Notification Laws
  • Privacy Policy
  • Transparency Report
Menu

Experts Debate the Value of Breach Notification Laws

Posted on March 9, 2009 by Dissent

Kim Zettner of Threat Level discusses the different views expressed at a seminar last week on whether data breach notification laws do any good.

As expected, the upshot was “we don’t know” because there are not enough data, surveys may not be reliable indicators, etc.

Of course, there is another way to frame the issue of whether such laws do any good, which is to recognize that prevention of identity theft is not necessarily the sole or even the most important reason for entities to be required to disclose breaches.

If a steward of your personal information assures you that your data will be protected and then it isn’t, should they be obliged to let you know that your data have been lost, stolen, possibly misused, etc? Consumers can choose to stop doing business with an entity that loses their data, they can choose to dump the notifications in the garbage, unopened, they can choose to sign up or not sign up for any services offered. But the choice needs to rest with the individual whose personal information has been compromised, and that requires notification.

So… are existing breach notification laws adequate if one recognizes that ID theft may not be the main reason to notify? Some state laws (like California’s) are better than others, and new breach notification provisions in the stimulus bill will increase notification of health-related data breaches, but no notification law is worth a damn if the entity doesn’t even know that it’s been breached or is left to make the decision to notify based on its own determination of risk of ID theft. As far as this privacy advocate is concerned, breach notification is a “right to know” issue even more than a “need to know” issue.

Related posts:

  • Obama’s federal data breach notification bill: boon to businesses, but not most consumers
Category: Breach LawsCommentaries and Analyses

Post navigation

← USAID.gov compromised, malware and exploits served
TX: Computers With NEISD Personal Information Stolen →

Now more than ever

"Stand with Ukraine:" above raised hands. The illustration is in blue and yellow, the colors of Ukraine's flag.

Search

Browse by Categories

Recent Posts

  • Hacker helped kill FBI sources, witnesses in El Chapo case, according to watchdog report
  • Texas Centers for Infectious Disease Associates Notifies Individuals of Data Breach in 2024
  • Battlefords Union Hospitals notifies patients of employee snooping in their records
  • Alert: Scattered Spider has added North American airline and transportation organizations to their target list
  • Northern Light Health patients affected by security incident at Compumedics; 10 healthcare entities affected
  • Privacy commissioner reviewing reported Ontario Health atHome data breach
  • CMS warns Medicare providers of fraud scheme
  • Ex-student charged with wave of cyber attacks on Sydney uni
  • Detaining Hackers Before the Crime? Tamil Nadu’s Supreme Court Approves Preventive Custody for Cyber Offenders
  • Potential Cyberattack Scrambles Columbia University Computer Systems

No, You Can’t Buy a Post or an Interview

This site does not accept sponsored posts or link-back arrangements. Inquiries about either are ignored.

And despite what some trolls may try to claim: DataBreaches has never accepted even one dime to interview or report on anyone. Nor will DataBreaches ever pay anyone for data or to interview them.

Want to Get Our RSS Feed?

Grab it here:

https://databreaches.net/feed/

RSS Recent Posts on PogoWasRight.org

  • Hacker helped kill FBI sources, witnesses in El Chapo case, according to watchdog report
  • Germany Wants Apple, Google to Remove DeepSeek From Their App Stores
  • Supreme Court upholds Texas law requiring age verification on porn sites
  • Justices nix Medicaid ‘right’ to choose doctor, defunding Planned Parenthood in South Carolina
  • European Commission publishes its plan to enable more effective law enforcement access to data
  • Sacred Secrets: The Biblical Case for Privacy and Data Protection
  • Microsoft’s Departing Privacy Chief Calls for Regulator Outreach

Have a News Tip?

Email: Tips[at]DataBreaches.net

Signal: +1 516-776-7756

Contact Me

Email: info[at]databreaches.net

Mastodon: Infosec.Exchange/@PogoWasRight

Signal: +1 516-776-7756

DMCA Concern: dmca[at]databreaches.net
© 2009 – 2025 DataBreaches.net and DataBreaches LLC. All rights reserved.