https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2025/01/texas-enforcing-its-state-data-privacy-law-so-should-other-states Skip to main content * About + Contact + Press + People + Opportunities * Issues + Free Speech + Privacy + Creativity and Innovation + Transparency + International + Security * Our Work + Deeplinks Blog + Press Releases + Events + Legal Cases + Whitepapers + Podcast + Annual Reports * Take Action + Action Center + Electronic Frontier Alliance + Volunteer * Tools + Privacy Badger + Surveillance Self-Defense + Certbot + Atlas of Surveillance + Cover Your Tracks + Street Level Surveillance + apkeep * Donate + Donate to EFF + Giving Societies + Shop + Org. Membership + Other Ways to Give + Membership FAQ * Donate + Donate to EFF + Shop + Other Ways to Give * Search form Search [ ] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Email updates on news, actions, and events in your area. Join EFF Lists * Copyright (CC BY) * Trademark * Privacy Policy * Thanks Electronic Frontier Foundation Donate Electronic Frontier Foundation * About + Contact + Press + People + Opportunities * Issues + Free Speech + Privacy + Creativity and Innovation + Transparency + International + Security * Our Work + Deeplinks Blog + Press Releases + Events + Legal Cases + Whitepapers + Podcast + Annual Reports * Take Action + Action Center + Electronic Frontier Alliance + Volunteer * Tools + Privacy Badger + Surveillance Self-Defense + Certbot + Atlas of Surveillance + Cover Your Tracks + Street Level Surveillance + apkeep * Donate + Donate to EFF + Giving Societies + Shop + Org. Membership + Other Ways to Give + Membership FAQ * Donate + Donate to EFF + Shop + Other Ways to Give * Search form Search [ ] Texas Is Enforcing Its State Data Privacy Law. So Should Other States. DEEPLINKS BLOG By Hayley Tsukayama January 22, 2025 Locational Privacy Urban Texas Is Enforcing Its State Data Privacy Law. So Should Other States. Share It Share on Twitter Share on Facebook Copy link Locational Privacy Urban States need to have and use data privacy laws to bring privacy violations to light and hold companies accountable for them. So, we were glad to see that the Texas Attorney General's Office has filed its first lawsuit under Texas Data Privacy and Security Act (TDPSA) to take the Allstate Corporation to task for sharing driver location and other driving data without telling customers. In its complaint, the attorney general's office alleges that Allstate and a number of its subsidiaries (some of which go by the name "Arity") "conspired to secretly collect and sell 'trillions of miles' of consumers' 'driving behavior' data from mobile devices, in-car devices, and vehicles." (The defendant companies are also accused of violating Texas' data broker law and its insurance law prohibiting unfair and deceptive practices.) On the privacy front, the complaint says the defendant companies created a software development kit (SDK), which is basically a set of tools that developers can create to integrate functions into an app. In this case, the Texas Attorney General says that Allstate and Arity specifically designed this toolkit to scrape location data. They then allegedly paid third parties, such as the app Life360, to embed it in their apps. The complaint also alleges that Allstate and Arity chose to promote their SDK to third-party apps that already required the use of location date, specifically so that people wouldn't be alerted to the additional collection. That's a dirty trick. Data that you can pull from cars is often highly sensitive, as we have raised repeatedly. Everyone should know when that information's being collected and where it's going. More state regulators should follow suit and use the privacy laws on their books. The Texas Attorney General's office estimates that 45 million Americans, including those in Texas, unwittingly downloaded this software that collected their information, including location information, without notice or consent. This violates Texas' privacy law, which went into effect in July 2024 and requires companies to provide a reasonably accessible notice to a privacy policy, conspicuous notice that they're selling or processing sensitive data for targeting advertising, and to obtain consumer consent to process sensitive data. This is a low bar, and the companies named in this complaint still allegedly failed to clear it. As law firm Husch Blackwell pointed out in its write-up of the case, all Arity had to do, for example, to fulfill one of the notice obligations under the TDPSA was to put up a line on their website saying, "NOTICE: We may sell your sensitive personal data." In fact, Texas's privacy law does not meet the minimum of what we'd consider a strong privacy law. For example, the Texas Attorney General is the only one who can file a lawsuit under its states privacy law. But we advocate for provisions that make sure that everyone, not only state attorneys general, can file suits to make sure that all companies respect our privacy. Texas' privacy law also has a "right to cure"--essentially a 30-day period in which a company can "fix" a privacy violation and duck a Texas enforcement action. EFF opposes rights to cure, because they essentially give companies a "get-out-jail-free" card when caught violating privacy law. In this case, Arity was notified and given the chance to show it had cured the violation. It just didn't. According the complaint, Arity apparently failed to take even basic steps that would have spared it from this enforcement action. Other companies violating our privacy may be more adept at getting out of trouble, but they should be found and taken to task too. That's why we advocate for strong privacy laws that do even more to protect consumers. Nineteen states now have some version of a data privacy law. Enforcement has been a bit slower. California has brought a few enforcement actions since its privacy law went into effect in 2020; Texas and New Hampshire are two states that have created dedicated data privacy units in their Attorney General offices, signaling they're staffing up to enforce their laws. More state regulators should follow suit and use the privacy laws on their books. And more state legislators should enact and strengthen their laws to make sure companies are truly respecting our privacy. Related Issues Privacy Locational Privacy Share It Share on Twitter Share on Facebook Copy link Join EFF Lists Discover more. Email updates on news, actions, events in your area, and more. Email Address [ ] Postal Code (optional) [ ] Anti-spam question: Enter the three-letter abbreviation for Electronic Frontier Foundation: [ ] Don't fill out this field (required) [ ] [Submit] Thanks, you're awesome! Please check your email for a confirmation link. Oops something is broken right now, please try again later. Related Updates graphic with icons of phones with eyes in them Deeplinks Blog by Hannah Zhao | January 24, 2025 EFF to Michigan Supreme Court: Cell Phone Search Warrants Must Strictly Follow The Fourth Amendment's Particularity and Probable Cause Requirements Last week, EFF, along with the Criminal Defense Attorneys of Michigan, ACLU, and ACLU of Michigan, filed an amicus brief in People v. Carson in the Supreme Court of Michigan, challenging the constitutionality of the search warrant of Mr. Carson's smart phone.In this case, Mr. Carson was arrested for... 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To help incoming federal policymakers think through these key issues, the EFF has shared a transition memo with the Trump Administration and the 119th U.S. Congress. Zuckerberg Facebook Deeplinks Blog by Lena Cohen | January 17, 2025 Mad at Meta? Don't Let Them Collect and Monetize Your Personal Data If you're fed up with Meta right now, you're not alone. Meta tracks you across millions of websites and apps and its business model relies on your data. If you want to limit Meta's ability to collect and profit from your personal data, here's what you need to know. 8 squares with surveillance methods Legal Case Pen-Link v. County of San Joaquin Sheriff's Office As part of EFF's transparency mission, we sent public records requests to California law enforcement agencies--including the San Joaquin Sheriff's Office--seeking information about law enforcements' use of technology sold by two companies: Pen-Link and its subsidiary, Cobwebs Technologies. We went to court to make sure the public gets access to... [supreme-court-3] Deeplinks Blog by Jason Kelley | January 13, 2025 Five Things to Know about the Supreme Court Case on Texas' Age Verification Law, Free Speech Coalition v Paxton Texas' age verification law robs internet users of anonymity, exposes them to privacy and security risks, and blocks some adults entirely from accessing sexual content that's protected under the First Amendment. Age-verification laws like this one reach into fully every U.S. adult household. We look forward to the court striking... 8 squares with surveillance methods Deeplinks Blog by Mario Trujillo, Beryl Lipton | January 6, 2025 EFF Goes to Court to Uncover Police Surveillance Tech in California The private company Pen-Link sued the San Joaquin Sheriff's Office to block the agency from disclosing to EFF the unredacted contracts between them, claiming the information is a trade secret. We are going to court to make sure the public gets access to these records. An animated image showing location pins dropping onto a street map from above, tracing several paths Deeplinks Blog by Lena Cohen | January 6, 2025 Online Behavioral Ads Fuel the Surveillance Industry--Here's How Each time you see a targeted ad, your personal information is exposed to thousands of advertisers and data brokers through a process called "real-time bidding" (RTB). This process does more than deliver ads--it fuels government surveillance, poses national security risks, and gives data brokers easy access to your online activity... Discover more. Email updates on news, actions, events in your area, and more. Email Address [ ] Postal Code (optional) [ ] Anti-spam question: Enter the three-letter abbreviation for Electronic Frontier Foundation: [ ] Don't fill out this field (required) [ ] [Submit] Thanks, you're awesome! Please check your email for a confirmation link. 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