In the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, many countries have sought to collect and use personal data as a means of helping to control the spread of the COVID-19 virus and to manage its effect on public health.

However, in doing so, public authorities and private organisations must continue to comply with existing rules governing the use of personal data. In some countries, specific rules or guidance have been issued in this area.

Cullen International’s new research covers privacy-related policies and regulations applicable in the Americas in relation to the current health emergency, including any special measures introduced.

Some examples of such measures include:

• the sharing by telecoms operators of aggregated location data with public authorities to map when and where people concentrate together, and possibly also to control the movements of individuals;
• tracking people infected with or exposed to the virus through data obtained from their cell phones; and
• additional data processing by employers seeking to ensure the safety of their staff, such as asking employees to conduct temperature checks (to inform human resources departments if someone’s temperature rises above the normal threshold) or even to disclose the identity of a worker who is confirmed to be infected. 

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