California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced an investigative sweep targeting businesses that use surveillance pricing, which involves setting individualized prices based on consumer data. The Department of Justice is sending information request letters to companies in the retail, grocery, and hotel sectors to assess compliance with the CCPA's purpose limitation principle. This action seeks to ensure that consumers are not charged different prices without proper disclosure and that businesses adhere to privacy laws.
In-house legal teams should review vendor, customer, and data processing agreements with entities in the retail, grocery, and hotel sectors. Focus on clauses governing data usage restrictions, purpose limitation, disclosure requirements for price differentiation based on personal data, and consumer consent mechanisms. Specific attention should be given to whether contracts permit or restrict using consumer data (e.g., browsing history, location, demographics) to set individualized prices. Updates may be needed to explicitly prohibit undisclosed surveillance pricing, enhance transparency in privacy policies and contracts, and ensure robust opt-out rights aligned with CCPA's purpose limitation principle.
Entity
businesses with significant online presence in the retail, grocery, and hotel sectors
Also known as: Retail, Grocery, and Hotel Businesses
Industry
Retail"businesses with significant online presence in the retail, grocery, and hotel sectors"
"California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA)"
"Surveillance pricing is the use of a consumer’s personal information to set targeted, individualized prices for a product or service."
"algorithmic pricing"
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$12.8M
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