*By Mike Teich*
A sweeping data privacy bill has been approved in California, but it may be too late for internet users to protect their information, said former National Counterterrorism Center officer Dave White.
"You have to consider yourself compromised," he said. "You’ve already given your data away."
Experts are calling it the nation's most far-reaching law to give consumers more control over their personal data. Under the law, customers can request what personal data companies have collected and what third parties have received it.
The passing of the historical bill didn't come without criticism. The ACLU of Northern California said the legislation falls "woefully short" in defending individuals' rights.
"It's a great first step," White said. However, “it doesn’t go far enough."
Companies that collect user data, from Amazon to Microsoft to Uber, lobbied aggressively against the law, pouring millions into a [opposition campaigns](https://www.theverge.com/2018/6/15/17468292/amazon-microsoft-uber-california-consumer-privacy-act).
But consumer advocates called it a milestone victory. "Today was a [huge win](http://money.cnn.com/2018/06/28/technology/california-consumer-privacy-act/index.html) and gives consumer privacy advocates a blueprint for success," James P. Steyer, CEO and founder of Common Sense Media. "We look forward to working together with lawmakers across the nation to ensure robust data privacy protections for all Americans."
For full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/california-passes-historic-privacy-bill).
500K Covid Deaths, Texas Utility Bills & Arctic Milestone
The surge in pricing is hitting people who have chosen to pay wholesale prices for their power, which is typically cheaper than paying fixed rates during good weather, but can spike when there’s high demand for electricity.
Democrats who were involved in the questioning during the House Financial Services Committee hearing on the GameStop stock controversy spoke to Cheddar about what they felt they learned.
President Joe Biden toured a state-of-the-art coronavirus vaccine plant Friday as extreme winter weather across broad swaths of the U.S. handed his vaccination campaign its first major setback.
From Wall Street to Silicon Valley, these are the top stories that moved markets and had investors, business leaders, and entrepreneurs talking this week on Cheddar.
Cheddar has pulled together a rough timeline of the GameStop tale, from its inauspicious beginnings to becoming one of the biggest stories out of Wall Street since the crash of the housing market.
The UK Supreme Court has ruled that Uber drivers should be classed as “workers” and not self-employed.
Notable names like Bob Dylan and Volvo are all users of this top-tier cloud storage service, well-priced for content creators of any status.
A NASA rover has landed on Mars in an epic quest to bring back rocks that could answer whether life ever existed on the red planet.
In 1856, a chemistry student named William Henry Perkin accidentally created a strange substance with a rich purple hue. That accident turned out to be the world’s first synthetic dye.
