Promoting Digital Privacy Technologies Act

Bill: 116-s-4981
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Cortez Masto, Catherine [D-NV]
Introduced: 2020-12-08
Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications
Subjects: Computer security and identity theft

Computers and information technology

Congressional oversight

Public-private cooperation

Research administration and funding

Research and development

Right of privacy

Technology assessment
Latest action: action_date: 2020-12-08
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.

Summaries:
action_date: 2020-12-08
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p><b>Promoting Digital Privacy Technologies Act</b></p> <p>This bill directs the National Science Foundation to support merit-reviewed and competitively awarded research on privacy enhancing technologies. The award of grants for basic research on innovative approaches to the structure of computer and network hardware and software that are aimed at enhancing computer security may include privacy enhancing technologies and confidentiality. The bill also requires the Networking and Information Technology Research and Development Program to submit to Congress a report on the progress of research on privacy enhancing technologies and the development of specified voluntary resources.</p>

tv_txt: II 116th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 4981 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES December 8, 2020 Ms. Cortez Masto (for herself and Mrs. Fischer ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation A BILL To support research on privacy enhancing technologies and promote responsible data use, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Promoting Digital Privacy Technologies Act . 2. Definitions In this Act: (1) Personal data The term personal data means information that identifies, is linked, or is reasonably linkable to, an individual or a consumer device, including derived data. (2) Privacy enhancing technology The term privacy enhancing technology — (A) means any software solution, technical processes, or other technological means of enhancing the privacy and confidentiality of an individual’s personal data in data or sets of data; and (B) includes anonymization and pseu­do­ny­mi­za­tion techniques, filtering tools, anti-tracking technology, differential privacy tools, synthetic data, and secure multi-party computation. 3. National Science Foundation support of research on privacy enhancing technology The Director of the National Science Foundation, in consultation with other relevant Federal agencies (as determined by the Director), shall support merit-reviewed and competitively awarded research on privacy enhancing technologies, which may include— (1) fundamental research on technologies for de-identification, pseudonymization, anonymization, or obfuscation of personal data in data sets while maintaining fairness, accuracy, and efficiency; (2) fundamental research on algorithms and other similar mathematical tools used to protect individual privacy when collecting, storing, sharing, or aggregating data; (3) fundamental research on technologies that promote data minimization principles in data collection, sharing, and analytics; and (4) research awards on privacy enhancing technologies coordinated with other relevant Federal agencies and programs. 4. Integration into the computer and network security program Subparagraph (D) of section 4(a)(1) of the Cyber Security Research and Development Act ( 15 U.S.C. 7403(a)(1)(D) ) is amended to read as follows: (D) privacy enhancing technologies and confidentiality; . 5. Coordination with the National Institute of Standards and Technology and other stakeholders (a) In general The Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, acting through the Networking and Information Technology Research and Development Program, shall coordinate with the Director of the National Science Foundation, the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the Federal Trade Commission to accelerate the development and use of privacy enhancing technologies. (b) Outreach The Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology shall conduct outreach to— (1) receive input from private, public, and academic stakeholders, including the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for the purpose of facilitating public health research, on the development of privacy enhancing technologies; and (2) develop ongoing public and private sector engagement to create and disseminate voluntary, consensus-based resources to increase the integration of privacy enhancing technologies in data collection, sharing, and analytics by the public and private sectors. 6. Report on research and standards development Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, acting through the Networking and Information Technology Research and Development Program, shall, in coordination with the Director of the National Science Foundation and the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate, the Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies of the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate, the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives, and the Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies of the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives, a report containing— (1) the progress of research on privacy enhancing technologies; (2) the progress of the development of voluntary resources described under section 5(b)(2); and (3) any policy recommendations of the Directors that could facilitate and improve communication and coordination between the private sector, the National Science Foundation, and relevant Federal agencies through the implementation of privacy enhancing technologies.