Oregon allows consumers to opt out when companies collect and sell personal details gained in online transactions or simply when people log on to a website or use an app. Under the Oregon Consumer Privacy Act, residents can see what data companies keep about them, request corrections or deletion and opt out of data sales, targeted advertising and certain types of profiling. Businesses must also disclose their data practices and obtain consent before collecting sensitive information such as precise location, biometric or some health data.
How do privacy regulators decide which companies to poke? Often, it's a consumer complaint. Other times, it's a headline. And, sometimes, it's just personal. Regulators are consumers, too, after all. But it's important to remember that every brush with a regulator doesn't turn into a full-blown case, said privacy attorney Tyler Bridegan. Bridegan spent nearly two years as director of privacy and tech enforcement for the Texas attorney general's office. He left government work and returned to private practice in October as a partner at Womble Bond Dickinson.
