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Read the full article on the West Virginia Law Review Online Repository.
Abstract
This essay is about data privacy in West Virginia. However, many of the issues that affect West Virginians also affect people around the country and the world. As such, it’s also an essay about the state of data privacy today and the current challenges that affect people nationally and globally. Part one provides a general overview of the current issues involving data privacy. Part two discusses the current legislative framework and the larger gaps in data privacy law. Part three summarizes the key takeaways based on responses to a survey and focus groups sessions conducted in West Virginia in 2019. Finally, part four provides ten general principles that policymakers and legislatures should consider when crafting data privacy frameworks before examining how the current state of data privacy implicates the work of practicing attorneys in West Virginia. Many of the themes and issues discussed in this essay were part of a multi-year study for the Center for Consumer Law and Education, a joint initiative of West Virginia University and Marshall University. The culmination of this study resulted in a white paper that provides a comprehensive analysis regarding how the issues of data privacy affect not just West Virginians but also people around the country and the world.
