Privacy newsletter - November 3, 2020

Welcome to the latest edition of the Privacy Insider Newsletter. Each week, we send you the latest and smartest news in the world of data privacy.

Here are the top stories you might have missed:

1. Marriott Hotels to pay record fine for GDPR violations
   Marriott Hotels will pay a record $23.77 million fine due to its 2016 data breach, the U.K. Information Commissioner's Office has confirmed. "Millions of people's data was affected by Marriott's failure," Information Commissioner Elizabeth Denham said. "Thousands contacted a helpline and others may have had to take action to protect their personal data because the company they trusted it with had not." ITProPortal reports the fine was reduced from the initial number based on the company's improved security implementations since the breach.
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2. Will the U.S. election lead to better EU/US relations on privacy?
   The Wall Street Journal reports that European officials hope the result of the U.S. presidential election could be a boon for EU/U.S. relations relating to data privacy. That's especially true given that Europe's highest court invalided the Privacy Shield earlier this year. At issue is U.S. surveillance law, which some experts say could change under a new presidential regime. 
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3. Sweden's largest insurer says breach resulted in data leak to tech giants
   Reuters reports that a data breach at Sweden's largest insurer, Folksam, accidentally shared data, including Social Security numbers, on one million of its customers with Facebook, Google, Microsoft and LinkedIn. The company said it has reported the breach to the country's data protection authority. 
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4. EU, US, UK disagree on the future of cross-border data transfers 
   Politico reports on ongoing negotiations between the EU, U.S. and U.K. on how data will be shared internationally, and they aren't going great. The EU remains dissatisfied with U.S. protections and the lack of federal law, while the U.K. still must sort out a deal with the EU before the Brexit transition period ends, the report states. 
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5. Browser promising user-privacy grew 130 percent last year
   Privacy-based web browser Brave says its user-base grew by more than 130% since it released its "first Stable version" one year ago. The growth means Brave's browser boasts 20.5 million monthly active users, Bleeping Computer reports. Brave CEO Brendan Eich said the growth indicates users are "fed up with surveillance capitalism ... ." 
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6. What will future privacy regulation do to bank marketing? 
   Data privacy is becoming central to bank policies, ABA Bank Marketing reports. As the future of federal privacy legislation in the U.S. remains unclear and states enact their own laws., ABA Bank Marketing reports that bank marketing divisions are taking a more conservative approach, "eager not to run afoul of their own regulators or end up in the headlines." 
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7. Following TCF criticism, IAB Europe pushes back 
   Recently, there was much fanfare about the Belgian Data Protection Authority's investigation of the European-based Interactive Advertising Bureau's consent framework for sending targeted ads. IAB Europe says reports the DPA found the TCF to violate the EU General Data Protection Regulation are a "mischaracterization" and that it plans to launch a "robust defence" on behalf of the "app publishers and advertisers who rely on it every day to guide their operations." 
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8. US-based supermarket retailer to pay $235k over privacy breach
   New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal and the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs have announced a settlement with Wakefern Food Corp. and two of its associated supermarkets, NJBiz reports. The settlement follows allegations that the food retailers jeopardized customers' personal information when it improperly discarded electronic devices storing customer data. 
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