10 Data Privacy Predictions for 2024 & Beyond
The data privacy market is expected to change significantly by 2024 and beyond as a result of our shared commitment to a more moral and privacy-focused strategy. The field of data protection is changing as a result of new laws, increased public awareness among individuals and businesses, and technical developments. More countries across the world are establishing legislation about artificial intelligence, but it is still unclear if the United States will approve a Federal Data Privacy and Protection Bill. However, with more states launching independent measures to address privacy issues, the call for a US privacy bill is growing. The opportunity for innovation in risk mitigation increases with the complexity of AI-driven privacy threats. By utilising AI-powered solutions, businesses can quickly and effectively detect and resolve privacy-related concerns, cutting down on the amount of time it takes to find and halt data breaches.
Technological advancements will continue to change our lives as we go into the future. In the middle of this change, data privacy has gained attention, with people and organisations stressing how crucial it is to protect personal data. Although the data privacy landscape is dynamic and will likely continue to change, a few aspects seem likely to influence the story in 2024.
1. Vulnerabilities & Limitations in Generative AI
If application developers don’t employ generative AI (GenAI) properly and safely, there may be penalties and data breaches. This might make the widespread usage of GenAI very complex.
According to Forrester’s 2024 Cybersecurity, Risk, and Privacy Predictions, unsafe AI-generated code will be accountable for at least three data breaches because of security holes in the code or weaknesses in the dependencies the AI recommends.
2. Raising Penalties and Educating Customers
It should come as no surprise that there will be more fines in 2024 given the global expansion of data privacy and protection legislation.
The most noteworthy penalties in 2023 are listed below:
● The Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC) found the tech company Meta a record-breaking €1.2 billion ($1.3 billion) in May 2023 for transferring data between the EU and the US without sufficient data protection.
● The Irish DPC fined TikTok €345 million ($370 million) in September 2023 for particularly breaking the GDPR’s protections for children’s privacy regarding their data.
● Ireland’s (DPC) fined Facebook and Instagram €390 million ($425 million) in January 2023 for their terms of service and compelled “consent.”
● CRITEO was fined €40 million ($43 million) by the National Commission on Informatics and Liberty (CNIL) in June 2023 for their failure to get permission, give clear information, and enable user rights.
These are only a few of the significant fines that totalled more than €2 billion ($2.2 billion) when added together. Before we approach a trillion, organisations should take data privacy and protection seriously.
3. The Safety of Kids Online Will Be Highlighted
Bloomberg Law reports that state legislators are resuming their attempts to imitate the California Age-Appropriate Design Code Act, which specifies site design guidelines and privacy regulations for minors under the age of 18.
In 2024, Maryland and Minnesota plan to reintroduce laws akin to those in California, while Florida and Utah prioritise social media kid protection. In any case, when the law about children’s internet safety begins in 2024, be prepared for more of it.
4. Growth of Unstructured Information
There is already an overwhelming amount of unstructured data—between 80% and 90% of all data created is unstructured. Now fasten your seatbelts. Unstructured data is proliferating because of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI), and this trend is expected to continue until 2024.
It has always been difficult to analyse unstructured data, but now that GenAI and Large Language Models (LLM) are posing new risks, it is essential to categorise, manage, and secure unstructured data to make sure GenAI doesn’t have access to sensitive, private, regulated, or secret information.
Organisations may profit from employing technology that can search through enormous amounts of unstructured data to obtain visibility and safeguard the data with the use of AI and machine learning. Unstructured data will undoubtedly come up if it still needs to.
5. Proliferation of AI & Lawsuits to Proceed
Regarding the safe, secure, and reliable development and application of AI, the US has issued an AI Executive Order. The US is not the first nation to pass an AI privacy law; other nations are also considering creating laws related to AI, including the EU, Brazil, Canada, and China.
As nations learn to use AI responsibly and securely, 2024 will witness a rise in the number of AI laws enacted globally. In 2024, legislators will need to strike a compromise between upholding consumer rights and promoting the advancement of innovative artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
6. In 2024, US federal legislation remains unenacted
We don’t see a Federal Data Privacy and Protection Bill passing in the US in 2024, even though it is getting closer. Congress must enact privacy legislation that is compliant with the AI EO, even though the US has taken significant measures to address AI.
Several states will pass legislation about AI as there is no federal legislation. California has issued an ambitious AI rule, demonstrating its continued leadership in privacy regulation.
The push for a US Privacy bill will only become louder with legislation pending in many more states and about to take effect in Montana, Oregon, and Texas.
7. Evaluation of the Data Privacy Practices in the Automotive Industry
The automobile sector will be the one under the most scrutiny in 2024 concerning data protection. It’s Official: Cars Are the Worst Product Category We Have Ever Reviewed for Privacy, a new piece from the Mozilla Foundation, describes how automakers use trackers, cameras, microphones, and sensors to record drivers’ every action. That means that autos are a privacy nightmare confined to Elm Street!
The main problem is that automakers exchange and sell much too much personal data, and drivers should have greater control over their right to privacy. Consumers and data protection authorities will be keeping an eye on the privacy practices of the car sector in light of the recent problems at Tesla and Toyota.
8. Growing Awareness of Data Sovereignty
Given that many global corporations have found data localization to be difficult, awareness of data sovereignty will be crucial. Several recently enacted privacy rules that mandate that organisations manage their data in the nation in which it resides are to blame for the growth of data localization.
Organisations will place a higher priority on data sovereignty in 2024 because it reduces risk, fosters trust, improves brand reputation, complies with local and international laws, and—most importantly—helps avoid those really expensive fines.
9. Enabling Users with a Centralised Privacy User Experience
The tide is still moving in favour of people as more people become aware of data privacy. Customers strive for open data policies, express their right to own and control personal information, and want more control over their data.
Organisations will respond in 2024 by increasing the availability of clear permission procedures and privacy-enhancing technology (PET) for data management, to increase data responsibility. The reliable ability to provide data subjects with complete choice over when and how their data is utilised is a major advantage of data accountability PETs.
10. AI-Powered Risk Mitigation for Privacy
The average time to find and stop a data breach is 277 days, or over nine months, according to IBM’s 2023 Cost of a Data Breach report!
That is a long period. How much data did hackers manage to get away with in so short a period?
We anticipate that privacy threats will only increase and that the complexity of AI issues will only increase by 2024. However, complexity also presents a chance for innovation. Using AI-driven prompts, suggestions, and data patterns, organisations may mitigate possible dangers to their data privacy. AI is a useful tool for efficiently identifying and managing privacy problems because it can swiftly analyse enormous information, discover trends, and adapt to evolving rules.
Conclusion
In 2024, the state of data privacy is expected to continue changing in favour of a more moral and privacy-focused strategy. Trends in data privacy, from technological advancements to legislative changes, show a shared commitment to promoting an online space that upholds and defends people’s rights. A more secure, transparent, and privacy-aware digital environment is anticipated in the future as organisations prioritise responsible data practices and people gain more influence.
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