More data broker regulation needed in draft privacy bill

More protections against data brokers were urged by lawmakers and data privacy experts to be added to the draft American Privacy Rights Act, which would only allow the deletion of consumer data provided that individual requests are made to the data brokers, reports The Record, a news site by cybersecurity firm Recorded Future.

Such provision under the draft bill should be revised to give consumers more tools to control information obtained by data brokers, said House Energy and Commerce Committee Minority Leader Frank Pallone Jr., D-N.J.

On the other hand, Global Cyber Strategies CEO Justin Sherman noted the loopholes of the legislation, with a limited definition of third-party data collectors that excludes numerous players, as well as language that regulates only firms that generate most of their revenues from data trading.

"This idea Congress has that data brokers are only third parties is misguided, but it's also silly to say that you need to make a majority of your revenue from brokering data," said Sherman.