Microsoft said today that it will support the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) everywhere in the United States.

“In the absence of strong national legislation, California has enacted a landmark privacy law, known as the California Consumer Privacy Act, or CCPA, which goes into effect on January 1, 2020,” Microsoft corporate vice president Julie Brill writes in a new post to the Microsoft On the Issues Blog. “We are strong supporters of California’s new law and the expansion of privacy protections in the United States that it represents … Microsoft will provide effective transparency and control under CCPA to all people in the U.S.”

The CCPA is a set of strict rules designed to protect consumers and their personal data. However, the requirements are evolving, so Microsoft says that it will continue to monitor those changes to ensure that it is always in compliance. The long game, of course, is for pervasive privacy policies to be adopted at the national level.

“We are optimistic that the California Consumer Privacy Act—and the commitment we are making to extend its core rights more broadly—will help serve as a catalyst for even more comprehensive privacy legislation in the U.S.,” Brill notes. “As important a milestone as CCPA is, more remains to be done to provide the protection and transparency needed to give people confidence that businesses respect the privacy of their personal information and can be trusted to use it appropriately.”

Finally, Microsoft says it will also work to ensure that its enterprise customers are in compliance with the CCPA.

“Our goal is to help our customers understand how California’s new law affects their operations and provide the tools and guidance they will need to meet its requirements,” she adds.

Tagged with Privacy