Insights

Washington – Feb. 11, 2025: Crowell & Moring’s Privacy & Cybersecurity Group has added two seasoned in-house counsel to their leading privacy team. Rita Heimes, former general counsel for the International Association of Privacy Professionals, and Justin B. Weiss, former associate general counsel for global technology investor Naspers, join the firm as senior counsel in Washington, D.C. Weiss will also serve as senior director at Crowell Global Advisors.

On January 27, the EU and Brazil announced their positive determination on the mutual adequacy of Brazil’s and the EU’s data privacy frameworks — confirming the growing importance of transatlantic data transfers and the EU-Mercosur relationship. This adequacy decision, while not formally tied to the EU-Mercosur trade negotiations, is a historic development that can facilitate cross-border data transfers and fuel shared economic growth driven by data-centered service sectors.

The California Privacy Protection Agency (“CPPA”) is intensifying its oversight of data brokers with a new dedicated Data Broker Enforcement Strike Force within its Enforcement Division. The strike force will monitor and investigate data brokers’ compliance with their legal obligations under California’s Delete Act and the California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”).

On December 4, 2025, an advisory committee of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC or Commission) voted to advance a recommendation that the agency issue guidance requiring issuers to disclose information about the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on their companies.