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Key developments
States settle with bankrupt 23andMe over breach
The Statesman Journal's Anastasia Mason reported that Oregon, 40 other states and the District of Columbia reached a settlement with 23andMe over its 2023 data breach, announced by Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield on July 14. Oregon will receive $576,707 from the bankruptcy trustee, and a separate $46.75 million class-action pool will pay impacted consumers. The breach affected 6.9 million customers and exposed account information, location, ancestry reports, DNA matches, family names, profile pictures and birthdates.
Why it matters
The settlement adds state enforcement pressure over genetic-data security at a company already operating through bankruptcy.
Sources & driving stories
STATESMAN JOURNAL · Anastasia Mason
Statesman Journal coverageLocal governments split over license-plate readers
Yahoo reported that Newport eliminated its Flock camera pilot program on July 14, citing constitutional rights, while Kenton County Police is seeking approval to install six automated license plate readers at county-owned property including parks and the county jail parking lot. Commissioners and roughly a dozen public commenters raised privacy, oversight and constitutional concerns. KGET's Connor Dore reported that Bakersfield continues to use hundreds of plate readers, while the Los Angeles Police Department recently canceled its Flock camera contract.
Why it matters
Automated license plate reader deployments are increasingly turning on local governance, retention, sharing and oversight commitments rather than public-safety claims alone.
Sources & driving stories
YAHOO
Yahoo coverageKGET · Connor Dore
KGET coverageGrocery Outlet deploys facial recognition in California
CBS News San Francisco reported that Emeryville-based Grocery Outlet has rolled out SAFR facial recognition software at several Bay Area stores, including the Pleasant Hill Bargain Market. Signs tell shoppers the system identifies people suspected of shoplifting and alerts employees when someone on a watchlist enters. Electronic Frontier Foundation attorney Mario Trujillo criticized the system as a dragnet scanning every customer, while SAFR President Charisse Jacques said it is not connected to law enforcement and does not share retailer or shopper data with government agencies including ICE.
Why it matters
Retail facial recognition is moving into routine shopping environments, raising questions about notice, consent, accuracy, watchlist controls and appeal rights.
Sources & driving stories
CBS NEWS SAN FRANCISCO
CBS News San Francisco coverageWorth noting
WORTH NOTING
Gibraltar adds biometric border processing
Yahoo reported that after the Gibraltar-Spain border fence was removed under a post-Brexit agreement, travelers arriving from outside Schengen will face EU Entry-Exit System checks using photographs and digital fingerprints, alongside live facial-recognition cameras at entry points.
WORTH NOTING
CIPA pixel litigation remains unsettled
Spencer Fane's Evangelina Cantu noted a June 26 federal approval of a $3.85 million Los Angeles Times settlement over website trackers, while pending California appellate cases could decide whether tracking pixels qualify as pen registers under CIPA.
Still unclear
OPEN QUESTION
Will ALPR approvals require enforceable limits?
Newport’s cancellation, Kenton County’s pending proposal and Bakersfield’s continued use all point to retention, audits, outside-agency access and federal sharing as decisive privacy fault lines.
OPEN QUESTION
Can shoppers contest retail face-match decisions?
Grocery Outlet’s rollout depends on retailer watchlists, but the reporting leaves unresolved what notice, human review, appeal and deletion rights customers receive.