In early December, one particular piece of legislation passed the US House of Representatives and the Senate, enjoying bipartisan support. This legislation was the Daniel Anderl Judicial Security and Privacy Act, a law that has some interesting implications for the future of data privacy in America.

The Daniel Anderl Act was introduced in response to a tragedy in July 2020, when US District Court Judge Esther Salas was targeted at her New Jersey home by a gunman who critically injured her husband and tragically killed their son, Daniel Anderl. The attacker, a Manhattan lawyer named Roy Den Hollander, had previously argued a case before Judge Salas and had called her “incompetent”. He later used publicly available records to find Salas’s home address and orchestrate the attack.

The proposed law would protect the personal information of federal judges from being made available online and being sold by data brokers. It also allows judges to redact personal information displayed on federal government websites and prevents the publication of personal information by businesses and individuals unless there is a legitimate news media or public interest. It’s hoped that this would protect government officials from targeted attacks.

Daniel’s death is an undeniable tragedy, and we should make every effort to prevent more assassinations like this from happening. But this raises a question: why do only judges and government officials deserve this protection? They certainly aren’t the only ones at risk from personal information being publicly available.

The proliferation of personal information online has made it easier for citizens and government officials alike to be targeted by stalkers and online predators. In addition, the widespread availability of personal information online can have negative impacts on individuals’ employment and financial opportunities, leading to discrimination and other negative consequences. Ensuring that all individuals have the ability to control their personal information and limit its availability online can help prevent these outcomes.

The Daniel Anderl Act absolutely deserves our support. But this law needs to spark a conversation about extending these same protections to all individual Americans. Everyone deserves to be protected, not just government officials.

How might this new law affect your company, and how can you ensure compliance? Get in touch with us today for more information.