Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey says her office is looking into safeguarding consumer data in the wake of weaker privacy protections coming out of the House of Representatives.
“This is a very serious issue and my office, as we speak, is calling companies, getting information and will be looking very hard at what we need to do here to protect consumers whose information may be out there,” said Healey during an appearance on Boston Public Radio today.
The House of Representatives blocked privacy regulations this week in a move that allows internet service providers to sell consumer browsing data to advertisers.
Legislators voted to undo previous regulations that would have prevented companies like Comcast and Verizon from selling data like browsing history, location and shopping patterns.
The now-blocked regulations were passed during the Obama administration but were supposed to take effect later this year.
Healey called the decision “terrible for customers” and said her office is considering next steps to protect the rights of people in the Bay State, even if federal protections are eroded.
“This is a big deal, and we need to make sure we’re doing all we can to protect privacy and to protect the interests of residents and consumers especially,” she said. “What are the measures that we need to take? What are the steps we need to contemplate here in Massachusetts?”
Healey criticized House Republicans, saying they sought to undo important consumer protections for data stored by companies.
She suggested that sold data may not stay in the hands of advertisers, a concern shared by many privacy advocates.
“I have real concerns about what this means for consumers and how that data, data being collected on all of us all the time, might be then sold to other entities, and how consumers might be impacted,” she said.
Internet service providers lobbied for the block. They say they’ll provide consumers the chance to prevent their personal data from being sold by “opting out.”
Healey also criticized U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions for failing to address privacy issues in an speech he made at the National Association of Attorneys General Annual Winter Meeting in February.
Sessions spoke mainly on fighting violent crime during his address to the attorneys general, a move Healey called “out of touch.”
“Not once did he mention anything about ... cybersecurity, privacy; he of course didn’t mention anything about the justice department’s willingness to enforce laws around protecting consumers,” she said. “Unfortunately, we have a justice department that doesn’t seem to get it, that is out of touch with the realities of what is happening in our communities.”
Healey said the issue of data privacy has “real implications” for people in Massachusetts and said her office will continue to research protections.
“On the one hand, we want to make sure that through technology and enhancements, people are able to take advantage of neat and innovative things,” she said, “but we’ve also got to make sure that some basic principles around privacy and the protection of your own information isn’t thrown out.”
Attorney General Maura Healey joins us every month for 'Ask The AG.' You can hear her interview in its entirety by clicking on the audio link above.
