AB 1262: Information privacy: other connected device with a voice recognition feature.

Existing law prohibits a person or entity from providing the operation of a voice recognition feature of a connected television within the state without prominently informing the specified user of the connected television during the initial setup or installation. Existing law prohibits any actual recordings of spoken word collected for a specified purpose through the operation of a voice recognition feature by the manufacturer of a connected television, or a contracting third party, from being sold or used for any advertising purpose. Existing law prohibits a person or entity from compelling a manufacturer or other entity providing the operation of a voice recognition feature to build specific features for the purpose of allowing an investigative or law enforcement officer to monitor communications through that feature.

Existing law limits the liability of a manufacturer to functionality provided at the time of the original sale of a connected television and specifically excludes liability for functionality provided by applications the user chooses to use in the cloud or that are downloaded and installed by a user. Existing law prohibits a waiver of these prohibitions and authorizes their enforcement by injunction or civil penalty in a court of competent jurisdiction by the Attorney General or a district attorney. Existing law defines terms for these purposes.

This bill, beginning on January 1, 2024, would include smart speaker devices, as defined, within the scope of those provisions. The bill would prohibit any actual recordings or transcriptions collected or retained through the operation of a voice recognition feature by the manufacturer of a smart speaker device, that qualify as personal information or that are not deidentified, from being retained electronically or shared with, or sold to, a third party, unless the user has provided affirmative consent, as defined and specified, or the information is shared or retained for certain limited purposes. The bill would also prohibit the use of recordings made from an incorrect activation of the device, except as specified. The bill would also prohibit the manufacturer of a smart speaker device from retaining the recordings or transcripts, as specified, unless the user opts in. The bill would provide certain exemptions and would define related terms.

Existing law, an initiative measure that will take effect January 1, 2023, includes a definition of consent pertaining to consumer privacy.

This bill would expressly incorporate the initiative measures definition of consent into the definition of affirmative consent for the purposes of these provisions.