5 key steps to defend your digital privacy under Delaware's new law
Delaware residents now have unprecedented control over their personal data thanks to the state's new Personal Data Privacy Act, which took effect this January.
The groundbreaking legislation, passed in 2023, requires businesses to obtain explicit consent before collecting or sharing personal information, including names, addresses, phone numbers, emails and precise location data.
Attorney General Kathy Jennings characterized the law as an effective tool to manage the collection, use and sharing of personal information.
Under the new law, consumers can request businesses delete their personal data, opt out of targeted advertising and prevent the sale of their information to third parties. Parents can also exercise these rights on behalf of their children.
ILLEGAL OPERATIONS: Human trafficking is happening in plain sight. How Delaware is combating the trade
The Department of Justice's Fraud & Consumer Protection Division will oversee enforcement of the regulations. The department has established a dedicated privacy team to handle consumer complaints and concerns.
To help residents protect their privacy, the Attorney General's Office recommends several key steps:
Review and adjust privacy settings on mobile devices
Set social media accounts to private
Request data deletion from data brokers
Opt-out of targeted advertising on major platforms
Decline unnecessary data tracking requests from businesses
Residents can learn more about their new privacy rights at privacy.delaware.gov. Those with concerns about business data practices or unresolved complaints can email the Department of Justice's privacy team at privacy@delaware.gov.
You can contact Anitra Johnson at ajohnson@delawareonline.com.
This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: 5 key steps to protect online data under Delaware's new law
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Forbes
2 hours ago
- Forbes
The Hidden Fraud Machine Targeting The Credit Reporting System
Megaphone Hand business concept with text Financial Trouble? We Can Help!, vector illustration Credit reporting issues have consistently ranked among the top consumer complaints tracked by the Federal Trade Commission's Consumer Sentinel Network. According to the FTC's 2024 data book, reports related to credit bureaus and information furnishers surged by nearly 129% between 2022 and 2024, jumping from approximately 591,000 to over 1.3 million in just two years. This year, the growing spectrum of complaints range from inaccurate information offered by credit reporting agencies or data furnishers, to failures to reinvestigate disputed data, inadequate customer support, and unauthorized credit inquiries. The credit reporting system is currently under siege from a sophisticated fraud typology — injecting false information that undermines its integrity and hampers lenders' ability to accurately assess credit risk. Such fraud, reliant as it is on both passive and active manipulation of the credit bureaus' mandatory processes, is contributing to both the volume and complexity of the disputes the credit bureaus receive, with a cascading effect on legitimate consumers. Based on my ongoing research, an online market of fraud activity explicitly designed to manipulate the credit reporting infrastructure in our country is thriving. Here's why fraud affecting the credit reporting system is so pervasive, including some of the evidence suggesting fraudsters' are having success in manipulating the credit reporting industry. Credit bureaus are institutions that collect, manage, and distribute consumer credit data. Their primary function is to compile detailed records of individuals' borrowing activity, including payment history, loan balances, account statuses, and credit limits. This data is used to generate credit reports and scores, which lenders rely on to assess a person's creditworthiness and risk profile. Information furnishers are the companies that feed this data to the bureaus. These include financial institutions, credit card issuers, landlords, utility providers, and debt collectors, among others. Their reporting serves as the backbone of the credit ecosystem — ideally ensuring accuracy, consistency, and transparency. But increasingly, this ecosystem is being manipulated. Credit bureau and information furnisher fraud refers to a range of deceptive practices that undermine the integrity of the consumer credit reporting system. On the credit bureau side, this includes the creation of synthetic identities using either stolen or false Social Security numbers (sometimes marketed as Credit Privacy Numbers or CPNs) and the fraudulent removal of legitimate debts or inquiries via bulk disputes or false claims of identity theft (known as "credit washing"). These practices are often advertised in the online fraud ecosystem and on social media as "credit repair" solutions. Fraud involving information furnishing, meanwhile, also often revolves around credit boosting schemes, and is centered on the submission of fabricated or misleading credit data. A common M.O. involves fraudsters setting up shell entities and posing as lenders or landlords, registering these entities as data furnishers, and then reporting fake tradelines with positive information to a consumer's credit report Fraud involving information furnishing, meanwhile, also often revolves around credit boosting schemes, and is centered on the submission of fabricated or misleading credit data. A common M.O. involves fraudsters setting up shell entities and posing as lenders or landlords, registering these entities as data furnishers, and then reporting fake tradelines with positive information to a consumer's credit report. Credit bureau and data furnisher fraud is thriving due to a combination of technological vulnerabilities, weak oversight, social media accessibility, and high financial incentives. Credit bureaus play a vital role in the financial lives of millions of Americans, including those new to credit. Their systems are designed to create new credit files to enable a young person or recent immigrant, for example, to begin to build a history and gain access to credit. As long as the synthetic data appears consistent and mimics typical consumer behavior, it's treated as legitimate, allowing fraudulent credit identities to blend into the system undetected. Similarly, credit bureaus conduct limited vetting when onboarding new data furnishers — particularly small entities or non-traditional businesses. This weak oversight enables fraudsters to either establish seemingly legitimate furnishing entities using publicly available templates, virtual business addresses, and online registration services, or purchase aged shelf companies that already appear credible. These shelf companies, often marketed on openly accessible websites, can be repurposed to pose as legitimate furnishers. A Website Offering Aged Corporations For Sale Aged Shelf Companies That Could Be Easily Adapted For Data Furnishing Because the credit reporting system is built in large part on the assumption that both individuals and furnishers act in good faith and play by the rules, fraudsters and fraudulent businesses can operate undetected for months, submitting false tradelines — including fictitious loans or credit cards with perfect payment histories — to construct synthetic credit profiles. To carry out these schemes, fraudsters are leveraging clearnet websites and Social Media groups as easily accessible platforms to orchestrate credit reporting fraud, setting the stage for high-dollar scams and future bust-out operations. The presence of these markets on easily accessible websites gives interested parties effortless access to fraudulent services, further fueling the growth of this type of fraud. Group Page Offering Fake Social Security Packages A Website Offering Fake Social Security (CPNs) Packages For Sale Data Furnisher Ad on a Popular Social Media Platform. To enhance perceived legitimacy and reputation, these vendors actively encourage their customers to leave positive reviews, much like legitimate businesses do. Many of these customers enthusiastically describe successful transactions with CPN providers. Based on my investigation into several of these reviews, I believe that many of the individuals posting them are real people — and that they have, in fact, used synthetic identities created with bogus SSNs to rent apartments, and in some cases, to attempt to open bank accounts or secure lines of credit. Review of A Vendor Selling Fake Social Security Number Packages With limited law enforcement action targeting clearnet advertisers and a sluggish regulatory response, the risk-reward balance heavily favors fraudsters. Inflated credit profiles—built using synthetic identities and false tradelines—can be leveraged to obtain auto and apartment leases, personal loans, credit cards, and 'buy now, pay later' (BNPL) financing. In many cases, these profiles are also used in bust-out fraud schemes, where fraudsters max out credit lines, quickly convert the funds to cash or goods, and then abandon the accounts entirely—leaving lenders with unrecoverable losses. Fraudulent activity targeting credit reporting pollutes the system for everyone -- consumers and financial institutions alike. When synthetic identities, CPNs, credit washing and other credit boosting scams based on false disputes clog up the system and corrupt the data, everyone is harmed. From the consumer perspective, it is critical to highlight that fraudsters often exploit vulnerable individuals—such as those with poor credit, no credit history, or those who are experiencing financial hardship—by falsely presenting their schemes as legitimate financial tools. From the perspective of the financial industry, this emerging trend poses significant risks to lenders who depend on the integrity of credit reports to properly assess and manage risk, a core component of a safe and sound banking system. When credit reports are fabricated or manipulated through the use of fake furnishers and CPNs, lenders may inadvertently approve loans for synthetic identities or extend credit to individuals without the capacity to repay, leading to losses from charge-offs and defaults. The credit reporting system is a vital component of the American economy. Fraudsters recognize this importance and leverage regulatory and internal process gaps for their own illicit gain. Protecting the integrity of the credit reporting system must be a shared priority across regulators, financial institutions and consumer advocates, not only to safeguard economic stability, but to ensure vulnerable consumers are not exploited or criminalized by increasingly sophisticated forms of fraud.
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Yahoo
Scammers cheat Aussies out of millions in four months
Australians have lost at least $119 million to scams in the first four months of 2025, as phishing cons almost tripled in value. The consumer watchdog's National Anti-Scam Centre is calling on businesses to join forces to share data to combat increasingly sophisticated frauds. "Scams are affecting Australians of all ages, often beginning with an unprompted or unexpected contact via social media and other digital platforms," Australian Competition and Consumer Commission Deputy Chair Catriona Lowe said. "Sharing information is a key step towards improving community safety – organisations, such as banks, digital platforms, and telecommunication companies, can help disrupt scams faster and reduce the harm they cause." While the number of overall scam reports in the first four months of 2025 fell by almost a quarter to 72,230, value of losses swelled to $119 million, Scamwatch data showed. Phishing scams - where criminals use trusted channels to trick people into revealing personal information - accounted for $13.7 million in losses, nearly tripling compared to $4.6 million in early 2024. The use of social media to target victims is on the rise, with the number of people reporting losses jumping by almost half to more than 3300, as total losses spiked by more than 30 per cent to $23.4 million. Phone scams are on the decline, falling 11 per cent compared to early 2024, but they still account for the biggest proportion of losses, with $25.8 million scuppered between January and the end of April. Australians aged 65 and older were impacted most by scams with losses totalling more than $33 million. "While the average and median losses per victim have slightly decreased, the rise in overall financial loss and the number of people being impacted is a reminder to stay alert," Ms Lowe said. "We encourage all Australians to report suspicious scam activity, even if no money is lost as you can provide us with vital intelligence, and talk to friends and family to help spread awareness." While a piece of data could seem unremarkable on its own, it could help form powerful intelligence when combined with other leads, Ms Lowe said. "With data held across the ecosystem, sharing data with the National Anti-Scam Centre enables those vital connections to be made," she said. The watchdog urged Australians never to give away personal information if uncertain and noted scammers would try to create a sense of urgency. The ACCC advised people to hang up the phone and call back organisations via a trusted number to verify the contact, and to call their bank immediately if money is lost. People worried after handing over personal information should call IDCARE on 1800 595 160. Sign in to access your portfolio
Epoch Times
9 hours ago
- Epoch Times
Sen. Hawley Urges Justice Department to Investigate China-Financed Trucking Company
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) is urging the Department of Justice to open a formal investigation into an autonomous trucking company that was funded by money from a prominent Chinese businessman, alleging that it had passed on sensitive information to communist China. Hawley, a member of the Senate Judiciary and Homeland Security Committees,
