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Colorado Comprehensive Privacy Act

FullContactJuly 29, 2021

Colorado has recently taken new strides in privacy legislation. On July 7th, Governor Jared Polis signed the bill creating the Colorado Privacy Act (CPA). This law makes Colorado the third state to enact comprehensive privacy legislation behind California and Virginia. Beginning July 1st, 2023, the Colorado Privacy Act will take full effect in providing new rights and protecting consumers’ privacy.

What does this law cover?

The CPA gives Colorado residents the following rights:

Access to any personal data held by a controller/organization subject to the CPA law
Correction of any errors in the personal data collected by the organization
The right to ask for deletion of any consumer-related personal data

The law also provides consumers with the right to opt-out of the handling of their personal data with the intention of using it for the purposes of selling the data, profiling, or target advertising to consumers. The Colorado Privacy Act defines a consumer as “a Colorado resident acting only in an individual or household contact, “specifically omitting those “in a commercial or employment context, as a job applicant, or as a beneficiary of someone acting in an employment context.”

The legislation also states that when the law becomes officially enforced in 2023, there must be a noticeable way for consumers to unsubscribe or opt-out of personal data collection. Where other privacy legislation focuses on opt-in for consumers, the CPA is the first privacy law requiring companies to engage in universal opt-out technologies.

What This Means

The CPA covers the controlling and processing of personal data, meaning any logical information linked to an identifiable person. With how the act is defined, the law gives distinct orders to data controllers. These orders then require organizations subject to the law to evaluate their privacy solutions, practices, policies, and security. And the evaluation has to occur before the law goes into effect in July of next year.

As an individual, the Colorado Privacy Act is meant to protect you and your privacy and information. However, as a business, you need to understand the responsibility that comes with the access you have to consumer data and how to handle it correctly.

The act will hold businesses accountable for their collection and communications with customers and individual data. It sets an ethical and legal standard for companies to follow by holding them responsible for their daily business activities.

Enforcement power will lie solely with the Attorney General and Colorado District Attorneys to initiate action in response to law violations. Under the CPA, a violation is evaluated as a deceptive trade practice and thus can result in penalties maxing at $20,000 per violation.

The Future of Colorado Privacy Legislation

In the future, Governor Polis also signed a statement declaring the possibility of future conversations about enacting further legislation to continue improving laws around the CPA hereafter.

As a business, concentrating on integrating CPA requirements into business plans is a progressive strategy that could give the company a future industry advantage. With impending future legislation to refine the Colorado Consumer Privacy Act, it is crucial to make all of the necessary changes to follow the ordinances now to avoid the hefty violation fines later. Also, by making these changes immediately, it becomes much easier for businesses to quickly alter their business plans as more regulations are created.

Though Colorado is one of the first states to protect the privacy and security of consumers, industry experts project other states are soon to follow. In a world where privacy is so rare, the protection of an individual’s personal information by companies that exhibit genuine care for their customers and prospects is appreciated more than ever. The customer expects to have their data kept private, so following out with these expectations is crucial for businesses to establish trust and loyalty with their customer base.

FullContact and Privacy

FullContact continues to have a strong focus on privacy. In fact, we see consumer’s privacy as holding so much value that we are constantly creating tools for our clients to manage the privacy of their consumers and protect the security of their consumer’s data. We do this at the person-to-person level, stressing the importance of taking control of the customer experience using real people and real-time data. By using Identity Resolution and our Person-Centered Identity Graph, we have the ability to bring the right datasets together and create valuable solutions for the end consumer.

We understand that technology is constantly evolving and altering the MarTech and AdTech industries. With this in mind, we believe it is crucial now more than ever to put the spotlight on consumer privacy and how to best protect and secure consumer data. The solution— putting the power in the hands of the consumer for laws such as the Colorado Privacy Act.

This is just the beginning of consumer privacy laws and we cannot wait to continue supporting companies in creating ethical, secure solutions to improve the customer experience.