Tennessee House Republicans Propose Bill To Protect Consumer Privacy
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Published March 24, 2021
By William Haupt III [The Tennessee Conservative contributor]-
Republican leaders this week announced a proposal that protects Tennesseans’ right to privacy and returns control of personal information back to consumers.
The Tennessee Information Protection Act requires large technology companies to fully disclose to consumers what information is being collected about them through their online activities.
When consumers interact on websites, social media, or apps they leave behind personal information that is sold for profit to groups that use it to market their products, ideas or beliefs with targeted ads without our knowledge.
The legislation requires online platforms to disclose up-front exactly what personal information will be collected and how they intend to use it. Tennesseans will have the ability to “opt-out” of the selling of their personal information to third parties without discrimination.
The proposal includes protections for biometric data that measures physical characteristics like voice recordings, fingerprints, retinal scans or face recognition. Companies will be held accountable when they misuse a consumer’s information.
The bill gives the state attorney general authority to impose civil penalties when big tech companies fail to safeguard private data or violate consumer protections.
The proposal applies to companies with a global gross annual revenue of more than $25 million. It includes companies that buy, receive or sell information of more than 50,000 customers, households, devices or anyone that collects more than 50 percent of their global annual revenue from selling customers’ personal information.
