Cybersecurity and Data Privacy Developments: A Look Back on 2017, and Ahead to 2018

Over the last year, the existential risk posed by cyberattacks and data security vulnerabilities has become one of the top concerns for boards of directors, management, government agencies, and the public. 2017 was punctuated by a series of headline-grabbing breaches affecting scores of companies and hundreds of millions of individuals. At the same time, there were fast-moving changes in the regulatory landscape as regulators across the globe tried to respond to the systemic threats and protect their constituents, while not imposing crippling costs on businesses. Of particular note, the New York Department of Financial Services (“DFS”) cybersecurity regulations went into effect in 2017 and many companies spent significant resources preparing for the implementation of the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”), which goes into effect in May 2018. There were also other important legal developments, including record-breaking civil and regulatory settlements by companies that had suffered major breaches, while U.S. courts have been grappling with unique standing and privilege issues raised in the context of cyber-related litigation. Click here for more.
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