Washington PRIVACY ACT (WPA)

Evolving Privacy Laws Enhance Consumers’ Rights

• In 2020, the state of Washington introduced the Washington Privacy Act (WPA), which went into effect in 2021. The WPA is a privacy or data protection law that gives consumers various rights regarding their personal data. Based on this act, companies must protect six consumer rights, including the right to:

  • •  Access
  • •  Correct
  • •  Delete
  • •  Data portability
  • •  Restrict or object to the processing of personal data
    
    

  In addition to these consumer rights, WPA regulates facial recognition services. If a company uses facial recognition, there must be a conspicuous-placed notice on the premises stating that facial recognition is being used and any consumer who enters the premises has consented to its use. The act also prohibits the use of facial recognition technology for public surveillance of specific individuals with certain exceptions.

  Companies located in Washington or those companies that provide products or services intentionally targeted to Washington residents who meet threshold requirements must comply with these laws. Small companies that do not meet the threshold requirements of a) controlling or processing personal data of 100,000 consumers, or (b) derives fifty percent of gross revenue from the sale of personal data and controls or processes personal data of at least 25,000 consumers are exempt. 

  Companies in violation of this act are subjected to a civil penalty of no more than $7500 for each intentional violation and $2500 for each other violation. If a company receives a notice of suspected noncompliance for consumer rights, transparency obligations, privacy risk assessments, and/or contractual commitments of deidentified data, they are only in violation if they fail to remedy the violation within thirty days. 

  At Whitcomb, Selinsky, P.C., we can help you with a violation or your data privacy compliance. If you have received a notice, our dedicated legal team of data/cybersecurity/privacy law professionals will review the notice, propose a corrective action plan, and work with the Attorney General as needed. We will also assess your current data privacy procedures and recommend changes to ensure CPA compliance. For questions on your data privacy compliance needs, we will review your current data privacy practices and recommend additional practices to ensure CPA compliance.

• If you need legal help with Washington Privacy Laws, call us at (303)-534-1958 or fill out the form below. We are here to help you today.

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