Microsoft to apply California's Consumer Privacy Act across the US

California's new privacy law was approved in June 2018 - in the teeth of opposition from internet companies

Microsoft has come out as a "strong supporter" of California's landmark data privacy law and pledged to "honour" it throughout the US - not just California.

The California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) will go into effect on 1^st January 2020.

In a blog post, Microsoft's chief privacy officer Julie Brill described CCPA as "an important step toward providing people with more robust control over their data in the United States".

Brill continued: "It also shows that we can make progress to strengthen privacy protections in this country at the state level even when Congress can't or won't act."

CCPA, which was approved in June 2018, aims to protect consumers and their data in California. This law is somewhat similar to European Union's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

Under CCPA, businesses must be transparent about the collection and use of users' data. It will force firms to disclose what data they are collecting from users and whether they are selling it to any third party.

In addition, companies will have to allow users to have access to their data and to also opt out of any sales of their personal information. If a user requests a company to delete their data, companies will be required to do that.

However, ever since its announcement, the CCPA has not gone down well with most tech companies in California, which earn a major part of their revenue from surveilling online activity and selling users' data to advertisers.

CCPA is expected to cut their profits over the long term, as well as the business models of advertising companies, and other businesses that depend on consumer data to increase their sales and profits.

Many companies and lobby groups have tried to delay the law, while also urging the Congress to introduce and pass a federal privacy bill that will cover the entire country and supersede CCPA.

But, a federal law is unlikely to come before Congress in 2019 as lawmakers have differed over a number of issues.

For Microsoft, it could be much easier to honour CCPA than other companies as most of its business can qualify as a "service provider."

Under CCPA, special treatment will be offered to firms that can qualify as "service providers" - the entities having a written agreement with their customers, which states that the company will not use, retain, or disclose their personal data for any purpose other than some specific purpose mentioned in the agreement.

In addition to "service providers", the CCPA will affect two other types of entities: "businesses" and "third parties".