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Texas DPS doesn’t provide your data anymore — except to 2,400 entities

Watchdog Dave Lieber reports that the Texas Department of Public Safety provided your personal data to 2,400 different entities this year.

If you’re interested in protecting your privacy, here’s an update on the new year-old state law called the Texas Consumer Privacy Act.

This is an important step for privacy protection because for the first time, the state has made it illegal to sell your personal data to outside marketing companies. Fines for violators who resell the data to marketing companies can now be as high as $100,000. And companies that purchase the data must put up a $1 million performance bond.

That should help keep scammers away. Ever get calls for extended car warranties? Of course you do. Who hasn’t? The new law specifically prohibits those spam calls.

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The Watchdog previously reported that various parts of state government have sold your personal information for average annual earnings of $90 million, which goes into state coffers. I’ve been following this story for seven years since I first discovered what a cash cow this setup is.

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I’ve also reported that the Texas Department of Public Safety has sold the most data for the most money.

Now I advance my reporting here by telling you that an open records request I made shows that as of July, DPS had contracts with 2,400 different entities.

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DPS data sold includes your name, address, date of birth and other information found on your driver’s license and also your driving record, as known by the state.

DPS spokesperson Ericka Miller tells me, “The majority of entities who have a driver record agreement with DPS use the information obtained to verify driver record status. These entities include employers, insurers, insurance support organizations, employer support organizations or companies that self-insure their motor vehicles to monitor the records of drivers.”

The law’s sponsor, Robert Nichols, R-Jacksonville, says he will introduce the second part of his privacy plan in the 2023 Texas Legislature. Nichols has told me that when he learned that DPS earned $67 million in one year selling our data to 1,200 entities, “I feel like I hit pay dirt.”

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With my 2,400 entities on DPS’ sales records, I guess I hit double pay dirt.

A new state law blocking Texas DPS and DMV from selling your personal information to outside...
A new state law blocking Texas DPS and DMV from selling your personal information to outside marketing companies has taken effect. State Sen. Robert Nichols, R-Jacksonville, is the author. (Mark Matson)

Over at the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles, spokesperson Adam Shaivitz says his agency sells title and car registration including license plates of all motor vehicles.

Governments are exempt from paying for the data, but outside organizations have paid DPS $2,000 for the entire file of all Texas drivers licenses and identification cards. Weekly updates cost $75.

Under the new law, banks, auto businesses, insurance companies, car salvage operators, governments, courts and law enforcement can still access the information without paying fees.

The law exempts companies, charities, contractors and religious institutions that need the information to do background checks on employees and volunteers.

The goal of the new Texas Consumer Privacy Act is to protect the personal information of...
The goal of the new Texas Consumer Privacy Act is to protect the personal information of Texans. Will it work? Still too early to tell.(Johnrob / Getty Images)

You’d think that with the new $1 million performance bond requirement, many of the previous buyers will drop out. Not so, says DPS’ Miller.

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“Based on initial evaluations of contracts and exceptions noted as well as feedback we have received from contracted entities, we do not anticipate the number of entities to decrease,” she says.

DPS is now re-doing contracts with non-governmental and exempt buyers and requiring the $1 million bond plus proof of at least $3 million in liability and cyber-threat insurance.

If complaints are made about violators, DPS says it will conduct an audit to decide if enforcement actions should be taken. The penalty could include fines and immediate termination.

The rules for most state agencies that sell data should be final by next month. That’s when we’ll start to see how well the new law works. Or maybe not. It’s hard to trace the sender of spam back to its original source.

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Meanwhile, Jesus Guerrero, a 31-year-old Austin artist whom I profiled when he complained about getting spam mail after registering his car, says he is cynical that the new law will work.

“It feels like it’s a rigged game,” he said this week. “I would assume that all these marketing companies, when they saw this law coming up, tried to get away with a lot.”

We’ll all see, won’t we?

(Dave Lieber)
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