North Carolina Secures 23andMe Customer Privacy in Court Agreement

Several states in the U.S. are advancing data privacy protections with new and existing laws shaping how personal information is managed. Minnesota's Consumer Privacy Act (MCPA), effective July 31, 2025, extends enhanced privacy rights to consumers, covering entities that control or process significant amounts of personal data, and unlike California's law, includes nonprofits without broad exemptions. Personal data under the MCPA is defined as any information linked or reasonably linkable to an identified person, excluding deidentified or publicly available data, with the law imposing responsibilities on data controllers. California residents experience restricted website features on TribLIVE.com unless they opt in to data use, reflecting state-specific privacy requirements. Meanwhile, legal proceedings, such as the Court of Appeal's order concerning confidential information access in patent cases, demonstrate the balancing act between fair trial rights and confidentiality in U.S. jurisdictions. These developments indicate an evolving landscape where privacy rights and legal safeguards are becoming increasingly prominent in both consumer protection and judicial contexts.