The Vermont Statutes Online

Title 9 : Commerce and Trade

Chapter 062 : Protection of Personal Information

Subchapter 001 : General Provisions

• § 2430. Definitions [Effective until January 1, 2027; see also § 2430 effective January 1, 2027, set out below]

  As used in this chapter:

  (1)(A) “Brokered personal information” means one or more of the following computerized data elements about a consumer, if categorized or organized for dissemination to third parties:

  (i) name;

  (ii) address;

  (iii) date of birth;

  (iv) place of birth;

  (v) mother’s maiden name;

  (vi) unique biometric data generated from measurements or technical analysis of human body characteristics used by the owner or licensee of the data to identify or authenticate the consumer, such as a fingerprint, retina or iris image, or other unique physical representation or digital representation of biometric data;

  (vii) name or address of a member of the consumer’s immediate family or household;

  (viii) Social Security number or other government-issued identification number; or

  (ix) other information that, alone or in combination with the other information sold or licensed, would allow a reasonable person to identify the consumer with reasonable certainty.

  (B) “Brokered personal information” does not include publicly available information to the extent that it is related to a consumer’s business or profession.

  (2) “Business” means a commercial entity, including a sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation, association, limited liability company, or other group, however organized and whether or not organized to operate at a profit, including a financial institution organized, chartered, or holding a license or authorization certificate under the laws of this State, any other state, the United States, or any other country, or the parent, affiliate, or subsidiary of a financial institution, but does not include the State, a State agency, any political subdivision of the State, or a vendor acting solely on behalf of, and at the direction of, the State.

  (3) “Consumer” means an individual residing in this State.

  (4)(A) “Data broker” means a business, or unit or units of a business, separately or together, that knowingly collects and sells or licenses to third parties the brokered personal information of a consumer with whom the business does not have a direct relationship.

  (B) Examples of a direct relationship with a business include if the consumer is a past or present:

  (i) customer, client, subscriber, user, or registered user of the business’s goods or services;

  (ii) employee, contractor, or agent of the business;

  (iii) investor in the business; or

  (iv) donor to the business.

  (C) The following activities conducted by a business, and the collection and sale or licensing of brokered personal information incidental to conducting these activities, do not qualify the business as a data broker:

  (i) developing or maintaining third-party e-commerce or application platforms;

  (ii) providing 411 directory assistance or directory information services, including name, address, and telephone number, on behalf of or as a function of a telecommunications carrier;

  (iii) providing publicly available information related to a consumer’s business or profession; or

  (iv) providing publicly available information via real-time or near-real-time alert services for health or safety purposes.

  (D) The phrase “sells or licenses” does not include:

  (i) a one-time or occasional sale of assets of a business as part of a transfer of control of those assets that is not part of the ordinary conduct of the business; or

  (ii) a sale or license of data that is merely incidental to the business.

  (5)(A) “Data broker security breach” means an unauthorized acquisition or a reasonable belief of an unauthorized acquisition of more than one element of brokered personal information maintained by a data broker when the brokered personal information is not encrypted, redacted, or protected by another method that renders the information unreadable or unusable by an unauthorized person.

  (B) “Data broker security breach” does not include good faith but unauthorized acquisition of brokered personal information by an employee or agent of the data broker for a legitimate purpose of the data broker, provided that the brokered personal information is not used for a purpose unrelated to the data broker’s business or subject to further unauthorized disclosure.

  (C) In determining whether brokered personal information has been acquired or is reasonably believed to have been acquired by a person without valid authorization, a data broker may consider the following factors, among others:

  (i) indications that the brokered personal information is in the physical possession and control of a person without valid authorization, such as a lost or stolen computer or other device containing brokered personal information;

  (ii) indications that the brokered personal information has been downloaded or copied;

  (iii) indications that the brokered personal information was used by an unauthorized person, such as fraudulent accounts opened or instances of identity theft reported; or

  (iv) that the brokered personal information has been made public.

  (6) “Data collector” means a person who, for any purpose, whether by automated collection or otherwise, handles, collects, disseminates, or otherwise deals with personally identifiable information, and includes the State, State agencies, political subdivisions of the State, public and private universities, privately and publicly held corporations, limited liability companies, financial institutions, and retail operators.

  (7) “Encryption” means use of an algorithmic process to transform data into a form in which the data is rendered unreadable or unusable without use of a confidential process or key.

  (8) “License” means a grant of access to, or distribution of, data by one person to another in exchange for consideration. A use of data for the sole benefit of the data provider, where the data provider maintains control over the use of the data, is not a license.

  (9) “Login credentials” means a consumer’s user name or e-mail address, in combination with a password or an answer to a security question, that together permit access to an online account.

  (10)(A) “Personally identifiable information” means a consumer’s first name or first initial and last name in combination with one or more of the following digital data elements, when the data elements are not encrypted, redacted, or protected by another method that renders them unreadable or unusable by unauthorized persons:

  (i) a Social Security number;

  (ii) a driver license or nondriver State identification card number, individual taxpayer identification number, passport number, military identification card number, or other identification number that originates from a government identification document that is commonly used to verify identity for a commercial transaction;

  (iii) a financial account number or credit or debit card number, if the number could be used without additional identifying information, access codes, or passwords;

  (iv) a password, personal identification number, or other access code for a financial account;

  (v) unique biometric data generated from measurements or technical analysis of human body characteristics used by the owner or licensee of the data to identify or authenticate the consumer, such as a fingerprint, retina or iris image, or other unique physical representation or digital representation of biometric data;

  (vi) genetic information; and

  (vii)(I) health records or records of a wellness program or similar program of health promotion or disease prevention;

  (II) a health care professional’s medical diagnosis or treatment of the consumer; or

  (III) a health insurance policy number.

  (B) “Personally identifiable information” does not mean publicly available information that is lawfully made available to the general public from federal, State, or local government records.

  (11) “Record” means any material on which written, drawn, spoken, visual, or electromagnetic information is recorded or preserved, regardless of physical form or characteristics.

  (12) “Redaction” means the rendering of data so that the data are unreadable or are truncated so that no more than the last four digits of the identification number are accessible as part of the data.

  (13)(A) “Security breach” means unauthorized acquisition of electronic data, or a reasonable belief of an unauthorized acquisition of electronic data, that compromises the security, confidentiality, or integrity of a consumer’s personally identifiable information or login credentials maintained by a data collector.

  (B) “Security breach” does not include good faith but unauthorized acquisition of personally identifiable information or login credentials by an employee or agent of the data collector for a legitimate purpose of the data collector, provided that the personally identifiable information or login credentials are not used for a purpose unrelated to the data collector’s business or subject to further unauthorized disclosure.

  (C) In determining whether personally identifiable information or login credentials have been acquired or is reasonably believed to have been acquired by a person without valid authorization, a data collector may consider the following factors, among others:

  (i) indications that the information is in the physical possession and control of a person without valid authorization, such as a lost or stolen computer or other device containing information;

  (ii) indications that the information has been downloaded or copied;

  (iii) indications that the information was used by an unauthorized person, such as fraudulent accounts opened or instances of identity theft reported; or

  (iv) that the information has been made public. (Added 2005, No. 162 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. Jan. 1, 2007; amended 2011, No. 109 (Adj. Sess.), § 4, eff. May 8, 2012; 2017, No. 171 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. Jan. 1, 2019; 2019, No. 89 (Adj. Sess.), § 2.)

• § 2430. Definitions [Effective January 1, 2027; see also § 2430 effective until January 1, 2027, set out above]

  As used in this chapter:

  (1) “Authorized agent” means:

  (A) a person designated by a consumer to act on the consumer’s behalf;

  (B) a parent or legal guardian that acts on behalf of the parent’s child or on behalf of a child for whom the guardian has legal responsibility; or

  (C) a guardian or conservator that acts on behalf of a consumer that is subject to a guardianship, conservatorship, or other protective arrangement.

  (2)(A) “Biometric data” means that data generated from the technological processing of an individual’s unique biological, physical, or physiological characteristics can be used to identify an individual, including:

  (i) iris or retina scans;

  (ii) fingerprints;

  (iii) facial or hand mapping, geometry, or templates;

  (iv) vein patterns;

  (v) voice prints; and

  (vi) gait or personally identifying physical movement or patterns.

  (B) “Biometric data” does not include:

  (i) a digital or physical photograph;

  (ii) an audio or video recording; or

  (iii) any data generated from a digital or physical photograph, or an audio or video recording, unless such data is generated to identify a specific individual.

  (3)(A) “Brokered personal information” means any information, including derived data and unique identifiers, that is linked or reasonably linkable, alone or in combination with other information, to an identified or identifiable individual or to a device that identifies, is linked to, or is reasonably linkable to one or more identified or identifiable individuals in a household.

  (B) “Brokered personal information” does not include publicly available information.

  (4) “Business” means a commercial entity, including a sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation, association, limited liability company, or other group, however organized and whether or not organized to operate at a profit, including a financial institution organized, chartered, or holding a license or authorization certificate under the laws of this State, any other state, the United States, or any other country, or the parent, affiliate, or subsidiary of a financial institution, but does not include the State, a State agency, any political subdivision of the State, or a vendor acting solely on behalf of, and at the direction of, the State.

  (5) “Consumer” means an individual residing in this State.

  (6)(A) “Data broker” means a business, or unit or units of a business, separately or together, that knowingly collects and sells or licenses to third parties the brokered personal information of a consumer with whom the business does not have a direct relationship.

  (B) As used in this subdivision (6), “direct relationship” means that a consumer has intentionally interacted with a business for the purpose of accessing, purchasing, using, requesting, or obtaining information about the business’s products or services. A consumer does not have a direct relationship with a business if the purpose of the consumer’s engagement is to exercise a consumer right or for the business to verify the consumer’s identity. A business does not have a direct relationship with a consumer simply because the business collects brokered personal information directly from the consumer; the consumer must intend to interact with the business. A business is still a data broker and does not have a direct relationship with a consumer as to the brokered personal information the business sells about the consumer that it collected outside of a first-party interaction with the consumer.

  (C) The phrase “sells or licenses” does not include a one-time or occasional sale of assets of a business as part of a transfer of control of those assets that is not part of the ordinary conduct of the business.

  (7) “Data collector” means a person who, for any purpose, whether by automated collection or otherwise, handles, collects, disseminates, or otherwise deals with personally identifiable information, and includes the State, State agencies, political subdivisions of the State, public and private universities, privately and publicly held corporations, limited liability companies, financial institutions, and retail operators.

  (8) “Encryption” means use of an algorithmic process to transform data into a form in which the data is rendered unreadable or unusable without use of a confidential process or key.

  (9)(A) “GenAI system” means an artificial intelligence system that can generate derived synthetic content, including text, images, video, and audio, that emulates the structure and characteristics of the system’s training data.

  (B) As used in subdivision (A) of this subdivision (9), “artificial intelligence system” means an engineered or machine-based system that varies in its level of autonomy and that can, for explicit or implicit objectives, infer from the input it receives how to generate outputs that can influence physical or virtual environments.

  (10) “Identified or identifiable individual” means an individual who can be readily identified, directly or indirectly.

  (11) “License” means a grant of access to, or distribution of, data by one person to another in exchange for consideration. A use of data for the sole benefit of the data provider, where the data provider maintains control over the use of the data, is not a license.

  (12) “Login credentials” means a consumer’s user name or email address, in combination with a password or an answer to a security question, that together permit access to an online account.

  (13)(A) “Personally identifiable information” means a consumer’s first name or first initial and last name in combination with one or more of the following digital data elements, when the data elements are not encrypted, redacted, or protected by another method that renders them unreadable or unusable by unauthorized persons, subject to the exception in subdivision (C) of this subdivision (13):

  (i) a Social Security number;

  (ii) a driver license or nondriver State identification card number, individual taxpayer identification number, passport number, military identification card number, or other identification number that originates from a government identification document that is commonly used to verify identity for a commercial transaction;

  (iii) a financial account number or credit or debit card number, if the number could be used without additional identifying information, access codes, or passwords;

  (iv) a password, personal identification number, or other access code for a financial account;

  (v) biometric data;

  (vi) genetic information; and

  (vii)(I) health records or records of a wellness program or similar program of health promotion or disease prevention;

  (II) a health care professional’s medical diagnosis or treatment of the consumer; or

  (III) a health insurance policy number.

  (B) “Personally identifiable information” does not include publicly available information.

  (C) “Personally identifiable information” does not require a consumer’s first name or first initial and last name if any of the data elements contained in subdivisions (A)(i)–(vii) of this subdivision (13) is sufficient to perform or attempt to perform identity theft against the consumer.

  (14) “Precise geolocation” means information derived from technology that can precisely and accurately identify the specific location of a consumer within a radius of 1,850 feet.

  (15) “Processor” means a person who performs any operation or set of operations, whether by manual or automated means, on brokered personal information or on sets of brokered personal information, such as the collection, use, storage, disclosure, analysis, deletion, or modification of brokered personal information on behalf of a business.

  (16)(A) “Publicly available information” means information that:

  (i) is made available:

  (I) through federal, state, or local government records; or

  (II) to the general public from widely distributed media; or

  (ii) a data broker has a reasonable basis to believe that the consumer has lawfully made available to the general public.

  (B) “Publicly available information” does not include:

  (i) biometric data collected by a business about a consumer without the consumer’s knowledge;

  (ii) any obscene visual depiction, as defined in 18 U.S.C. § 1460;

  (iii) genetic data, unless otherwise made publicly available by the consumer to whom the information pertains; or

  (iv) intimate images, authentic or computer generated, known to be nonconsensual.

  (17) “Record” means any material on which written, drawn, spoken, visual, or electromagnetic information is recorded or preserved, regardless of physical form or characteristics.

  (18) “Redaction” means the rendering of data so that the data are unreadable or are truncated so that not more than the last four digits of the identification number are accessible as part of the data.

  (19)(A) “Sale” means the exchange of a consumer’s brokered personal information by the data broker to a third party for monetary or other valuable consideration.

  (B) “Sale” does not include:

  (i) the disclosure of brokered personal information to a processor that processes the brokered personal information on behalf of the data broker;

  (ii) the disclosure of brokered personal information to a third party for purposes of providing a product or service requested by the consumer;

  (iii) the disclosure or transfer of brokered personal information to an affiliate of the data broker;

  (iv) the disclosure, with the consumer’s consent, of brokered personal information where the consumer directs the data broker to disclose the brokered personal information or intentionally uses the data broker to interact with a third party;

  (v) the disclosure of publicly available information; or

  (vi) the disclosure or transfer of brokered personal information to a third party as an asset that is part of a merger, acquisition, bankruptcy, or other transaction, or a proposed merger, acquisition, bankruptcy, or other transaction, in which the third party assumes control of all or part of the data broker’s assets.

  (C) As used in subdivision (B) of this subdivision (19), “affiliate” means a legal entity that shares common branding with another legal entity or controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with another legal entity.

  (D) As used in subdivision (C) of this subdivision (19), “control” or “controlled” means:

  (i) ownership of, or the power to vote, more than 50 percent of the outstanding shares of any class of voting security of a company;

  (ii) control in any manner over the election of a majority of the directors or of individuals exercising similar functions; or

  (iii) the power to exercise controlling influence over the management of a company.

  (20)(A) “Security breach” means unauthorized acquisition of electronic data, or a reasonable belief of an unauthorized acquisition of electronic data, that compromises the security, confidentiality, or integrity of a consumer’s personally identifiable information or login credentials maintained by a data collector.

  (B) “Security breach” does not include good faith but unauthorized acquisition of personally identifiable information or login credentials by an employee or agent of the data collector for a legitimate purpose of the data collector, provided that the personally identifiable information or login credentials are not used for a purpose unrelated to the data collector’s business or subject to further unauthorized disclosure.

  (C) In determining whether personally identifiable information or login credentials have been acquired or are reasonably believed to have been acquired by a person without valid authorization, a data collector may consider the following factors, among others:

  (i) indications that the information is in the physical possession and control of a person without valid authorization, such as a lost or stolen computer or other device containing information;

  (ii) indications that the information has been downloaded or copied;

  (iii) indications that the information was used by an unauthorized person, such as fraudulent accounts opened or instances of identity theft reported; or

  (iv) that the information has been made public. (Added 2005, No. 162 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. Jan. 1, 2007; amended 2011, No. 109 (Adj. Sess.), § 4, eff. May 8, 2012; 2017, No. 171 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. Jan. 1, 2019; 2019, No. 89 (Adj. Sess.), § 2; 2025, No. 138 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. January 1, 2027.)