Illinois

815 Ill. Comp. Stat. 530/5, 530/10, 530/12, 530/15, 530/20, 530/25

H.B. 1633 (signed into law June 16, 2005, Public Act 94-36)

Effective June 27, 2006

H.B. 3025 (signed Aug. 22, 2011, Public Act 97-0483)

Effective Jan. 1, 2012

Application. Any data collector, which includes, but is not limited to, government agencies, public and private universities, privately and publicly held corporations, financial institutions, retail operators, and any other entity that, for any purpose, handles, collects, disseminates, or otherwise deals with nonpublic PI (collectively, Entity) that owns or licenses PI concerning an IL resident.

The provisions governing maintenance of PI that the Entity does not own appear applicable to any Entity maintaining information on IL residents, whether or not the Entity conducts business in IL.

Security Breach Definition. An unauthorized acquisition of computerized data that compromises the security, confidentiality, or integrity of PI maintained by the Entity.

Good-faith acquisition of PI by an employee or agent of the Entity for a legitimate purpose of the Entity does not constitute a security breach, provided that the PI is not used for a purpose unrelated to the Entity’s business or subject to further unauthorized disclosure.

Notification Obligation. Any Entity to which the statute applies shall notify the resident at no charge that there has been a breach following discovery or notification of the breach. Note: Illinois may take the position that any unauthorized acquisition or use by a third party triggers the notification obligation, regardless of materiality or ownership of the data.

Notification Obligation for State Agencies. Any state agency that collects PI and has had a breach of security of the system data or written material shall submit a report within five business days of the discovery or notification of the breach to the General Assembly listing the breaches and outlining any corrective measures that have been taken to prevent future breaches of the security of the system data or written material. Any agency that has submitted a report under the statute shall submit an annual report listing all breaches of security of the system data or written materials and the corrective measures that have been taken to prevent future breaches.

Third-Party Data Notification. Any Entity that maintains or stores computerized data that includes PI that the Entity does not own or license shall notify the owner or licensee of the information of any breach of the security of the data immediately following discovery, if the PI was, or is reasonably believed to have been, acquired by an unauthorized person. In addition, such Entities shall cooperate with the data owner or licensee in matters relating to the breach, including 1) giving notice of the (approximate) date and nature of the breach; 2) informing the owner or licensee of steps taken or planned relating to the breach.

Timing of Notification. The disclosure notification shall be made in the most expedient time possible and without unreasonable delay, consistent with any measures necessary to determine the scope of the breach and restore the reasonable integrity, security, and confidentiality of the data system.

Personal Information Definition. An individual’s first name or first initial and last name in combination with any one or more of the following data elements, when either the name or the data elements are not encrypted or redacted:

Social Security Number;
Driver license number or IL identification card number; or
Account number or credit card number or debit card number or an account number or credit card number in combination with any required security code, access code, or password that would permit access to an individual’s financial account.

PI does not include publicly available information that is lawfully made available to the general public from federal, state, or local government records.

Notice Required. Notice may be provided by one of the following methods:

Written notice; or
Electronic notice, if consistent with the provisions regarding electronic records and signatures set forth in 15 U.S.C. § 7001 (E-SIGN Act).

Contents of Notice. The notice shall include:

the toll-free numbers and addresses for consumer reporting agencies;
the toll-free number, address, and website address for the Federal Trade Commission; and
a statement that the individual can obtain information from these sources about fraud alerts and security freezes.

Substitute Notice Available. If the Entity demonstrates that the cost of providing notice would exceed $250,000, or that the affected class of subject persons to be notified exceeds 500,000, or the Entity does not have sufficient contact information. Substitute notice shall consist of all of the following:

Email notice if the Entity has an email address for subject persons;
Conspicuous posting of the notice on the Entity’s Web site if the Entity maintains one; and
Notification to major statewide media.

Exception: Own Notification Policy. An Entity that maintains its own notification procedures as part of an information security policy for the treatment of PI and is otherwise consistent with the timing requirements of the statute, shall be deemed in compliance with the notification requirements of the statute if the Entity notifies subject persons in accordance with its policies in the event of a breach of the security of the system data.

Other Key Provisions:

Delay for Law Enforcement. Notice may be delayed if a law enforcement agency determines that the notice will impede a criminal investigation and provides the Entity with a written request of delay. Notice required by the statute must be made without unreasonable delay and as soon as possible after the law enforcement agency determines that notification will no longer impede the investigation.
Violation of the statute constitutes an unlawful practice under the IL Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act.
Waiver Not Permitted.