Untitled California Attorney General Opinion

BACKGROUND

The California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (Civil Code, §§ 1798.100 et seq.) is the first law of its kind in the nation. 1 It allows consumers in California the ability to find

1 As of this writing, a number of other states have passed or are considering similar legislation. (See Scott, Consumer Privacy Protection Continues to Be a Key Issue for State Lawmakers (April 2021) vol. 27, No. 7, HR Compliance Law Bull. 1.)

1 20-303 out what information a covered business is holding about them, and to opt out of certain transfers and sales of their personal information.

The question before us asks for clarification of one of the provisions in the CCPA, having to do with the consumer’s right to request and receive specific pieces of information collected about them. 2 Before we proceed with a detailed analysis of the question, however, we will take a moment to introduce the general contours of this statutory scheme.

How the CCPA Came To Be

Information privacy law has been developing for decades in the United States, along with the development of internet commerce. In 1998, the Federal Trade Commission published a report titled “Privacy Online: A Report to Congress,”…