Justin Kloczko

3 days ago | consumerwatchdog.org | Justin Kloczko

Los Angeles, CA—California’s bill regulating surveillance pricing, AB 446 (Ward), moves to the Senate after passing a State Assembly floor vote this afternoon, 44-16. The bill is now expected to be heard by the Senate Judiciary Committee. “Companies are using personal data against us to charge people different prices for the same exact product,” said Justin Kloczko, tech and privacy advocate at Consumer Watchdog. “They want to know how bad you want that hat and charge you as much as possible.

1 week ago | consumerwatchdog.org | Justin Kloczko

Los Angeles, CA—California’s landmark bill regulating surveillance pricing, AB 446 (Ward), advanced out of the Assembly Committee on Judiciary today by a vote of 8 to 3. “Companies are using our data against us in ways that we fully don’t understand,” said Justin Kloczko, tech and privacy advocate at Consumer Watchdog.

2 weeks ago | consumerwatchdog.org | Justin Kloczko

After enormous pushback from large companies, the governor and from within, California’s top privacy agency today approved a package of gutted regulations surrounding personal information and automated decisions deployed by businesses. Perhaps most significantly, the definition of what constitutes an automated decision has been narrowed to systems that “substantially facilitate” a decision.

2 weeks ago | mercurynews.com | Justin Kloczko

Let’s say you work in the food service industry for a large company, whose scheduling software assigns shifts to workers. For you, which shifts you receive mean everything because much of your salary depends on tips. But in the eyes of the algorithm, you could be deprioritized and miss out on lucrative weekend shifts based on mysterious data. Without your knowledge, information such as when you take a break, how fast you turned over a table or where you live could work against you.

2 weeks ago | calmatters.org | Justin Kloczko

Welcome to CalMatters, the only nonprofit newsroom devoted solely to covering statewide issues that affect all Californians. Sign up for WeeklyMatters for a Saturday morning digest of the latest news and commentary from the Golden State. This story is part of California Voices, a commentary forum aiming to broaden our understanding of the state and spotlight Californians directly impacted by policy or its absence. Learn more here.