California Passes Law to Protect Brain Data

A new California law extends consumer privacy protections to brainwave data collected by implants or wearable devices.

Gov. Gavin Newsom over the weekend signed legislation amending California’s Consumer Privacy Act, the state’s stepping stone from GDPR in Europe, to classify “neural data” as protected personal information along the lines of precise geolocation, genetics and biometrics.

Neurorights Foundation Chief Medical Officer Sean Pauzauskie called the California law “a huge victory” for patients suffering from mental health conditions, as well as for consumers who simply want to improve their lives with new technologies.

The non-governmental organization co-sponsored the bill with a state senator.

“The substantial privacy protections it provides should only increase confidence in all varieties of these revolutionary neurotechnologies, the vast majority of which are based in California,” Pauzauskie said in the release.

California is the second state after Colorado to enact brainwave data protection, introducing a law requiring privacy safeguards similar to those in place for fingerprints.

The California law sends a “clear signal to the rapidly growing neurotechnology industry” to protect people’s mental privacy, Jared Genser, general counsel of the NeuroRights Foundation, said in a release.

Genser advocated for a national brainwave data privacy law.

Protections under California law include the right to know what brain information is being collected, to limit its disclosure, and to opt out or request deletion of it.

The law applies to devices capable of recording or changing nervous system activity, whether they are implanted or worn, the non-governmental organization said.

The potential of devices to tap into what people feel or think has raised concerns that they could be used to manipulate feelings or thoughts.

“In the coming years, the sensitivity of neural data will increase with increasing investment… resulting in increased resolution of brain scans and the collection of larger brain datasets,” the NGO predicts.

“Meanwhile, generative artificial intelligence will continue to improve the ability to accurately decode these scans.”

Billionaire Elon Musk and his startup Neuralink are among those who strive to connect brains and computers.

Musk predicts that Neuralink implants will not only restore sight to the blind, but also enable people to see in infrared or ultraviolet light or enable them to share concepts telepathically with others.

“We want to give people superpowers,” Musk said. “Not only are we restoring your previous functionality, but also that you actually have functionality much greater than that of a normal human.”

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