BILL NUMBER: SB 893 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE MAY 27, 2014
AMENDED IN SENATE MAY 6, 2014
AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 29, 2014
AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 9, 2014
INTRODUCED BY Senator Hill
JANUARY 13, 2014
An act to amend Sections 1798.29 and 1798.82 of, and to add Title
1.81.23 (commencing with Section 1798.90.5) to Part 4 of Division 3
of, the Civil Code, relating to personal information.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 893, as amended, Hill. Automated license plate recognition
systems: use of data.
(1) Existing law authorizes the Department of the California
Highway Patrol to retain license plate data captured by license plate
recognition (LPR) technology, also referred to as an automated
license plate recognition (ALPR) system, for not more than 60 days
unless the data is being used as evidence or for the investigation of
felonies. Existing law prohibits the department from selling the
data or from making the data available to an agency that is not a law
enforcement agency or an individual that is not a law enforcement
officer.
Existing law authorizes the department to use LPR data for the
purpose of locating vehicles or persons reasonably suspected of being
involved in the commission of a public offense, and requires the
department to monitor the internal use of the data to prevent
unauthorized use and to submit to the Legislature, as a part of the
annual automobile theft report, information on the department's LPR
practices and usage.
This bill would impose specified requirements on an "ALPR
operator," as defined, including, among others, complying with all
applicable statutory and constitutional requirements and the
provisions of the bill, ensuring that the information or data the
ALPR operator collects is protected with certain safeguards, and to
implement and maintain specified security procedures and a usage and
privacy policy with respect to that information or data.
This bill would also prohibit an ALPR operator from engaging in
certain acts, including, among others, retaining any information or
data other than the license plate number, the date and time the
information or data is collected, and the location coordinates where
the information or data is collected. The bill would further
prohibit a public agency from disclosing, distributing, making
available, selling, accessing, or otherwise providing that
information or data, to any private entity or individual unless
authorized by a court order, or as part of civil or criminal
discovery. Unless otherwise authorized, the bill would prohibit a
person authorized to access or distribute that information or data
from further disclosing, distributing, making available, selling,
accessing, or otherwise providing that information or data to another
person for any purpose. The bill would require an ALPR
operator that accesses or provides access to information or data
collected through the use or operation of an ALPR system to maintain
a specified record of that access.
The bill would, in addition to any other sanctions, penalties, or
remedies provided by law, authorize an individual who has been
harmed by a violation of these provisions to bring a civil
action in any court of competent jurisdiction against a person who
knowingly obtains, discloses, or uses information or data
collected through the use of an ALPR system in violation of the bill,
and would authorize a court to award specified remedies.
caused that violation.
(2) Existing law requires any agency, and any person or business
conducting business in California, that owns or licenses computerized
data that includes personal information, as defined, to disclose in
specified ways, any breach of the security of the system or data, as
defined, following discovery or notification of the security breach,
to any California resident whose unencrypted personal information
was, or is reasonably believed to have been, acquired by an
unauthorized person. Existing law defines "personal information" for
these purposes to include an individual's first name and last name,
or first initial and last name, in combination with one or more
designated data elements relating to, among other things, social
security numbers, driver's license numbers, financial accounts, and
medical information.
This bill would include information or data collected through the
use or operation of an automated license plate recognition system,
when that information or data is not encrypted, in the definition of
"personal information" discussed above.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 1798.29 of the Civil Code is amended to read:
1798.29. (a) Any agency that owns or licenses computerized data
that includes personal information shall disclose any breach of the
security of the system following discovery or notification of the
breach in the security of the data to any resident of California
whose unencrypted personal information was, or is reasonably believed
to have been, acquired by an unauthorized person. The disclosure
shall be made in the most expedient time possible and without
unreasonable delay, consistent with the legitimate needs of law
enforcement, as provided in subdivision (c), or any measures
necessary to determine the scope of the breach and restore the
reasonable integrity of the data system.
(b) Any agency that maintains computerized data that includes
personal information that the agency does not own shall notify the
owner or licensee of the information of any breach of the security of
the data immediately following discovery, if the personal
information was, or is reasonably believed to have been, acquired by
an unauthorized person.
(c) The notification required by this section may be delayed if a
law enforcement agency determines that the notification will impede a
criminal investigation. The notification required by this section
shall be made after the law enforcement agency determines that it
will not compromise the investigation.
(d) Any agency that is required to issue a security breach
notification pursuant to this section shall meet all of the following
requirements:
(1) The security breach notification shall be written in plain
language.
(2) The security breach notification shall include, at a minimum,
the following information:
(A) The name and contact information of the reporting agency
subject to this section.
(B) A list of the types of personal information that were or are
reasonably believed to have been the subject of a breach.
(C) If the information is possible to determine at the time the
notice is provided, then any of the following: (i) the date of the
breach, (ii) the estimated date of the breach, or (iii) the date
range within which the breach occurred. The notification shall also
include the date of the notice.
(D) Whether the notification was delayed as a result of a law
enforcement investigation, if that information is possible to
determine at the time the notice is provided.
(E) A general description of the breach incident, if that
information is possible to determine at the time the notice is
provided.
(F) The toll-free telephone numbers and addresses of the major
credit reporting agencies, if the breach exposed a social security
number or a driver's license or California identification card
number.
(3) At the discretion of the agency, the security breach
notification may also include any of the following:
(A) Information about what the agency has done to protect
individuals whose information has been breached.
(B) Advice on steps that the person whose information has been
breached may take to protect himself or herself.
(4) In the case of a breach of the security of the system
involving personal information defined in paragraph (2) of
subdivision (g) for an online account, and no other personal
information defined in paragraph (1) of subdivision (g), the agency
may comply with this section by providing the security breach
notification in electronic or other form that directs the person
whose personal information has been breached to promptly change his
or her password and security question or answer, as applicable, or to
take other steps appropriate to protect the online account with the
agency and all other online accounts for which the person uses the
same user name or email address and password or security question or
answer.
(5) In the case of a breach of the security of the system
involving personal information defined in paragraph (2) of
subdivision (g) for login credentials of an email account furnished
by the agency, the agency shall not comply with this section by
providing the security breach notification to that email address, but
may, instead, comply with this section by providing notice by
another method described in subdivision (i) or by clear and
conspicuous notice delivered to the resident online when the resident
is connected to the online account from an Internet Protocol address
or online location from which the agency knows the resident
customarily accesses the account.
(e) Any agency that is required to issue a security breach
notification pursuant to this section to more than 500 California
residents as a result of a single breach of the security system shall
electronically submit a single sample copy of that security breach
notification, excluding any personally identifiable information, to
the Attorney General. A single sample copy of a security breach
notification shall not be deemed to be within subdivision (f) of
Section 6254 of the Government Code.
(f) For purposes of this section, "breach of the security of the
system" means unauthorized acquisition of computerized data that
compromises the security, confidentiality, or integrity of personal
information maintained by the agency. Good faith acquisition of
personal information by an employee or agent of the agency for the
purposes of the agency is not a breach of the security of the system,
provided that the personal information is not used or subject to
further unauthorized disclosure.
(g) For purposes of this section, "personal information" means any
of the following:
(1) An individual's first name or first initial and last name in
combination with any one or more of the following data elements, when
either the name or the data elements are not encrypted:
(A) Social security number.
(B) Driver's license number or California identification card
number.
(C) Account number, credit or debit card number, in combination
with any required security code, access code, or password that would
permit access to an individual's financial account.
(D) Medical information.
(E) Health insurance information.
(2) A user name or email address, in combination with a password
or security question and answer that would permit access to an online
account.
(3) Information or data collected through the use or operation of
an automated license plate recognition system, as defined in Section
1798.90.5, when that information or data is not encrypted.
(h) (1) For purposes of this section, "personal information" does
not include publicly available information that is lawfully made
available to the general public from federal, state, or local
government records.
(2) For purposes of this section, "medical information" means any
information regarding an individual's medical history, mental or
physical condition, or medical treatment or diagnosis by a health
care professional.
(3) For purposes of this section, "health insurance information"
means an individual's health insurance policy number or subscriber
identification number, any unique identifier used by a health insurer
to identify the individual, or any information in an individual's
application and claims history, including any appeals records.
(i) For purposes of this section, "notice" may be provided by one
of the following methods:
(1) Written notice.
(2) Electronic notice, if the notice provided is consistent with
the provisions regarding electronic records and signatures set forth
in Section 7001 of Title 15 of the United States Code.
(3) Substitute notice, if the agency demonstrates that the cost of
providing notice would exceed two hundred fifty thousand dollars
($250,000), or that the affected class of subject persons to be
notified exceeds 500,000 persons, or the agency does not have
sufficient contact information. Substitute notice shall consist of
all of the following:
(A) Email notice when the agency has an email address for the
subject persons.
(B) Conspicuous posting of the notice on the agency's Internet Web
site page, if the agency maintains one.
(C) Notification to major statewide media and the Office of
Information Security within the Department of Technology.
(j) Notwithstanding subdivision (i), an agency that maintains its
own notification procedures as part of an information security policy
for the treatment of personal information and is otherwise
consistent with the timing requirements of this part shall be deemed
to be in compliance with the notification requirements of this
section if it notifies subject persons in accordance with its
policies in the event of a breach of security of the system.
(k) Notwithstanding the exception specified in paragraph (4) of
subdivision (b) of Section 1798.3, for purposes of this section,
"agency" includes a local agency, as defined in subdivision (a) of
Section 6252 of the Government Code.
SEC. 2. Section 1798.82 of the Civil Code is amended to read:
1798.82. (a) Any person or business that conducts business in
California, and that owns or licenses computerized data that includes
personal information, shall disclose any breach of the security of
the system following discovery or notification of the breach in the
security of the data to any resident of California whose unencrypted
personal information was, or is reasonably believed to have been,
acquired by an unauthorized person. The disclosure shall be made in
the most expedient time possible and without unreasonable delay,
consistent with the legitimate needs of law enforcement, as provided
in subdivision (c), or any measures necessary to determine the scope
of the breach and restore the reasonable integrity of the data
system.
(b) Any person or business that maintains computerized data that
includes personal information that the person or business does not
own shall notify the owner or licensee of the information of any
breach of the security of the data immediately following discovery,
if the personal information was, or is reasonably believed to have
been, acquired by an unauthorized person.
(c) The notification required by this section may be delayed if a
law enforcement agency determines that the notification will impede a
criminal investigation. The notification required by this section
shall be made after the law enforcement agency determines that it
will not compromise the investigation.
(d) Any person or business that is required to issue a security
breach notification pursuant to this section shall meet all of the
following requirements:
(1) The security breach notification shall be written in plain
language.
(2) The security breach notification shall include, at a minimum,
the following information:
(A) The name and contact information of the reporting person or
business subject to this section.
(B) A list of the types of personal information that were or are
reasonably believed to have been the subject of a breach.
(C) If the information is possible to determine at the time the
notice is provided, then any of the following: (i) the date of the
breach, (ii) the estimated date of the breach, or (iii) the date
range within which the breach occurred. The notification shall also
include the date of the notice.
(D) Whether notification was delayed as a result of a law
enforcement investigation, if that information is possible to
determine at the time the notice is provided.
(E) A general description of the breach incident, if that
information is possible to determine at the time the notice is
provided.
(F) The toll-free telephone numbers and addresses of the major
credit reporting agencies if the breach exposed a social security
number or a driver's license or California identification card
number.
(3) At the discretion of the person or business, the security
breach notification may also include any of the following:
(A) Information about what the person or business has done to
protect individuals whose information has been breached.
(B) Advice on steps that the person whose information has been
breached may take to protect himself or herself.
(4) In the case of a breach of the security of the system
involving personal information defined in paragraph (2) of
subdivision (h) for an online account, and no other personal
information defined in paragraph (1) of subdivision (h), the person
or business may comply with this section by providing the security
breach notification in electronic or other form that directs the
person whose personal information has been breached promptly to
change his or her password and security question or answer, as
applicable, or to take other steps appropriate to protect the online
account with the person or business and all other online accounts for
which the person whose personal information has been breached uses
the same user name or email address and password or security question
or answer.
(5) In the case of a breach of the security of the system
involving personal information defined in paragraph (2) of
subdivision (h) for login credentials of an email account furnished
by the person or business, the person or business shall not comply
with this section by providing the security breach notification to
that email address, but may, instead, comply with this section by
providing notice by another method described in subdivision (j) or by
clear and conspicuous notice delivered to the resident online when
the resident is connected to the online account from an Internet
Protocol address or online location from which the person or business
knows the resident customarily accesses the account.
(e) A covered entity under the federal Health Insurance
Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 1320d et
seq.) will be deemed to have complied with the notice requirements in
subdivision (d) if it has complied completely with Section 13402(f)
of the federal Health Information Technology for Economic and
Clinical Health Act (Public Law 111-5). However, nothing in this
subdivision shall be construed to exempt a covered entity from any
other provision of this section.
(f) Any person or business that is required to issue a security
breach notification pursuant to this section to more than 500
California residents as a result of a single breach of the security
system shall electronically submit a single sample copy of that
security breach notification, excluding any personally identifiable
information, to the Attorney General. A single sample copy of a
security breach notification shall not be deemed to be within
subdivision (f) of Section 6254 of the Government Code.
(g) For purposes of this section, "breach of the security of the
system" means unauthorized acquisition of computerized data that
compromises the security, confidentiality, or integrity of personal
information maintained by the person or business. Good faith
acquisition of personal information by an employee or agent of the
person or business for the purposes of the person or business is not
a breach of the security of the system, provided that the personal
information is not used or subject to further unauthorized
disclosure.
(h) For purposes of this section, "personal information" means any
of the following:
(1) An individual's first name or first initial and last name in
combination with any one or more of the following data elements, when
either the name or the data elements are not encrypted:
(A) Social security number.
(B) Driver's license number or California identification card
number.
(C) Account number, credit or debit card number, in combination
with any required security code, access code, or password that would
permit access to an individual's financial account.
(D) Medical information.
(E) Health insurance information.
(2) A user name or email address, in combination with a password
or security question and answer that would permit access to an online
account.
(3) Information or data collected through the use or operation of
an automated license plate recognition system, as defined in Section
1798.90.5, when that information or data is not encrypted.
(i) (1) For purposes of this section, "personal information" does
not include publicly available information that is lawfully made
available to the general public from federal, state, or local
government records.
(2) For purposes of this section, "medical information" means any
information regarding an individual's medical history, mental or
physical condition, or medical treatment or diagnosis by a health
care professional.
(3) For purposes of this section, "health insurance information"
means an individual's health insurance policy number or subscriber
identification number, any unique identifier used by a health insurer
to identify the individual, or any information in an individual's
application and claims history, including any appeals records.
(j) For purposes of this section, "notice" may be provided by one
of the following methods:
(1) Written notice.
(2) Electronic notice, if the notice provided is consistent with
the provisions regarding electronic records and signatures set forth
in Section 7001 of Title 15 of the United States Code.
(3) Substitute notice, if the person or business demonstrates that
the cost of providing notice would exceed two hundred fifty thousand
dollars ($250,000), or that the affected class of subject persons to
be notified exceeds 500,000 persons, or the person or business does
not have sufficient contact information. Substitute notice shall
consist of all of the following:
(A) Email notice when the person or business has an email address
for the subject persons.
(B) Conspicuous posting of the notice on the Internet Web site
page of the person or business, if the person or business maintains
one.
(C) Notification to major statewide media.
(k) Notwithstanding subdivision (j), a person or business that
maintains its own notification procedures as part of an information
security policy for the treatment of personal information and is
otherwise consistent with the timing requirements of this part, shall
be deemed to be in compliance with the notification requirements of
this section if the person or business notifies subject persons in
accordance with its policies in the event of a breach of security of
the system.
SEC. 3. Title 1.81.23 (commencing with Section 1798.90.5) is added
to Part 4 of Division 3 of the Civil Code, to read:
TITLE 1.81.23. COLLECTION OF LICENSE PLATE INFORMATION
1798.90.5. The following definitions shall apply for purposes of
this title:
(a) "ALPR operator" means a person that uses or operates an ALPR
system, or accesses, stores, or maintains information or data
collected through the use or operation of an ALPR system, but does
not include the Department of the California Highway Patrol when
subject to Section 2413 of the Vehicle Code or a transportation
agency when subject to Section 31490 of the Streets and Highways
Code.
(b) "Automated license plate recognition system" or "ALPR system"
means a system of one or more mobile or fixed cameras combined with
computer algorithms to read and convert images of registration plates
and the characters they contain into computer-readable data.
(c) "Person" includes a law enforcement agency, government agency,
private entity, or individual.
(d) "Public agency" means and includes every state agency and
every local agency.
1798.90.51. An ALPR operator shall do all of the following:
(a) Comply with all applicable statutory and constitutional
requirements and this title.
(b) (1) Ensure that the information or data collected through the
use or operation of the ALPR system is protected with reasonable
operational, administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to
ensure its confidentiality and integrity.
(2) Implement and maintain reasonable security procedures and
practices appropriate for the nature of the information or data
collected, in order to protect the information or data from
unauthorized access, destruction, use, modification, or disclosure,
and to ensure compliance with this title.
(c) Implement and maintain a usage and privacy policy in order to
ensure that the information or data collected through the use or
operation of the ALPR system is consistent with respect for
individuals' privacy and civil liberties. The usage and privacy
policy shall be available in writing, and, if the ALPR operator has
an Internet Web site, the usage and privacy policy shall be posted
conspicuously on that Internet Web site.
1798.90.52. An ALPR operator shall not do either of the
following:
(a) Retain any information or data other than the license plate
number, the date and time the information or data is collected, and
the location coordinates where the information or data is collected.
This information or data shall not be collected if the license plate
number is not in public view.
(b) (1) Trespass or otherwise enter upon private property to
collect information or data for commercial purposes through the use
or operation of an ALPR system without first obtaining written
consent from the owner of the private property, or the owner's
designated agent.
(2) This subdivision shall only apply if the ALPR operator is a
private entity that operates an ALPR system for commercial purposes.
1798.90.53. (a) A public agency shall not disclose, distribute,
make available, sell, access, or otherwise provide for another
purpose, information or data collected through the use or operation
of an ALPR system to any private entity or individual unless
authorized by a court order, or as part of civil or criminal
discovery.
(b) Unless authorized by this title or another law, a person
authorized to access or distribute information or data collected
through the use or operation of an ALPR system shall not further
disclose, distribute, make available, sell, access, or otherwise
provide that information or data to another person for any purpose.
(c)
1798.90.53. If an ALPR operator accesses or provides
access to information or data collected through the use or operation
of an ALPR system, the ALPR operator shall maintain a record of that
access. At a minimum, the record shall include, but not be limited
to, all of the following:
(1)
( a) The date and time the information or
data is accessed.
(2)
( b) The person who accesses the information
or data.
(3)
( c) The purpose for accessing the
information or data.
1798.90.54. Information or data collected through the use or
operation of an ALPR system shall not be the sole basis for
establishing probable cause to obtain a search or arrest warrant.
1798.90.55. (a) In addition to any other sanctions, penalties, or
remedies provided by law, an individual who has been harmed by
a violation of this title may bring a civil action in any court
of competent jurisdiction against a person who knowingly
obtains, discloses, or uses information or data collected through the
use of an ALPR system in violation of this title.
caused that violation.
(b) The court may award all of the following:
(1) Actual damages, but not less than liquidated damages in the
amount of two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500).
(2) Punitive damages upon proof of willful or reckless disregard
of the law.
(3) Reasonable attorney's fees and other litigation costs
reasonably incurred.
(4) Other preliminary and equitable relief as the court determines
to be appropriate.