Law: The Delaware Personal Data Privacy Act (DPDPA)

Regulator: Consumer Protection Unit of Delaware's Department of Justice 

Summary: On September 11, 2023, the Delaware Governor signed House Bill 154 creating the Delaware Personal Data Privacy Act (DPDPA), which will enter into force on January 1, 2025. The DPDPA introduces obligations for controllers including data processing principles, the publication of a privacy notice, requirements to conduct a data protection assessment, and contracts between controllers and processors. The DPDPA also provides for data subject rights including the right to be informed, the right to access, correct, and delete personal data, obtain a copy of personal data, and the right to opt out of certain processing activities. Notably, the DPDPA specifies that the Consumer Protection Unit of Delaware's Department of Justice has exclusive authority to enforce its provisions.

Regarding breach notification, on August 17, 2017, the Delaware Governor signed into law an Act amending the Delaware Code (the Act) as it relates to security breaches involving personal information. Specifically, the Act revised the definition of what constitutes a security breach, expanded data breach notification requirements, and created a new requirement for businesses in Delaware to implement and maintain reasonable security safeguards to protect personal information.

In addition, Delaware has enacted a number of sector-specific laws governing areas including student data privacy, employee privacy, health privacy, and data security in the insurance sector. For instance, the Student Data Privacy and Protection Act is modeled on California's legislation and requires Delaware's Department of Education to promulgate extensive rules to protect the privacy of student data, mandates limits on the transfer of students' personally identifiable information, and creates online restrictions regarding personally identifiable information and child marketing.

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