WILMINGTON — Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings has introduced a new tool to help businesses get ready for the incoming Delaware Personal Data Privacy Act.
Earlier this month, the state Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Unit launched a new website to help consumers and businesses that handle personal data to understand the new law which goes into effect in 2025.
The Delaware Personal Data Privacy Act grants consumers the right to know what information is being collected, including personal information like race and ethnic origin, religious belief, sexual orientation, gender identity and health information. Consumers will also have the right to ask it to be corrected or request to delete it. Companies will also be required to provide the data in an easy-to-use format unless it reveals a company’s trade secrets.
“Delawareans deserve to have their private data protected and to have a say in how it is shared. Thanks to the upcoming implementation of the Delaware Personal Data Privacy Act, we will be able to do just that,” Jennings said in a prepared statement. “I am confident Delaware businesses will take their new personal data privacy obligations seriously, and our Consumer Protection Unit is working hard to help them prepare as this new law approaches in 2025.”
This law applies to businesses that process and control the data of no less than 35,000 consumers. It also targets those who control and process 10,000 or less and derive more than 20% of gross revenue from selling that data would also be forced to comply.
Rep. Krista Griffith (D-Fairfax) led a two-year campaign on the law with the hope of providing people the knowledge on what personal data is collected and how it’s used, including information used for targeted ads. A revised version of the bill, which included exemptions for financial institutions and national securities associations, was ultimately signed by Gov. John Carney last fall.
Come Jan. 1, 2025, businesses in Delaware must get consent to use and share sensitive data.
The Department of Justice Consumer Protection Unit is also embarking on a statewide initiative to educate businesses about the Delaware Personal Data Privacy Act. For more information, visit privacy.delaware.gov or email privacy@delaware.gov.
