Privacy Regulators Push New Consent, Surveillance and Data-Use Rules
Summary
A roundup of privacy developments covers EU-wide consent-manager proposals, an €825 million Uber fine, Ontario police-drone guidance, FTC personalized-pricing proposals and Washington’s call for broader privacy protections.
Key points
- Germany’s BfDI urged EU lawmakers to establish binding, machine-readable consent preferences that could replace repeated cookie banners.
- The Dutch DPA fined Uber €824.99 million over automated driver deactivations made between 2018 and 2022 without human review; Uber plans to challenge the decision.
- Ontario’s IPC guidance calls for lawful authority, privacy impact assessments, public consultation, data safeguards and meaningful human control for police drone programs.
- The FTC proposed that businesses disclose when prices are personalized, the basis for personalization and the types of personal data used.
- Washington’s Attorney General proposed stronger consent, data-minimization, biometric and geolocation protections, plus registration and safeguards for data brokers.
- The BfDI survey of 1,002 German adults found that 66% could imagine using a cookie manager and 71% said it would give them greater control over their data.
Article Details
- Event Type
- Privacy and cybersecurity policy developments, regulatory enforcement, and public-sector AI funding announcements
- Impact
- The article reports proposed and published privacy rules, an €824.99 million fine imposed on Uber over automated driver deactivations, and more than $5 billion in federal commitments for the Genesis Mission. It reports no specific cyberattack or malware incident.
People
Products
American Science and Security Platformnow been expanded into a whole-of-government initiative built around the DOE-developed American Science and Security Platform, which is intended to give researchers shared access to federal data, computingGenesis Mission🇺🇸 White House Commits More Than $5 Billion to Genesis Mission for AI-Driven ScienceUber🇳🇱 Dutch DPA Fines Uber €825M for Automated Driver Deactivations
Countries
CanadaFranceGermanyGermany’s Federal Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information (BfDI) has called for the EU Digital Omnibus negotiations to be used to establish binding, machine-readable privacy preferences andUnited StatesWashington🇺🇸 Washington AG Calls for Broader State Privacy Protections
Industries
Biotechnologyof National Science and Technology Challenges covering health, energy, infrastructure, manufacturing, biotechnology, quantum technologies and national security. Several initiatives are particularly relevant from an AIEnergyMission was launched by Executive Order in November 2025 and initially centered on the Department of Energy (DOE). It has now been expanded into a whole-of-government initiative built around the DOE-developedHealthcareLaw enforcementManufacturinga series of National Science and Technology Challenges covering health, energy, infrastructure, manufacturing, biotechnology, quantum technologies and national security. Several initiatives are particularlyScientific researchthe Genesis Mission, the Administration’s national program for applying artificial intelligence to scientific research. More than 15 federal agencies will participate through research funding, scientific datasets,Transportation