California Bill Would Eliminate Private Suits Over Pen Register Use
In-house counsel handling California-facing communications or surveillance policies must track SB 690 amendments that would remove private rights of action for unlawful pen register and trap-and-trace use.
Amended California SB 690 would foreclose private rights of action for violations of the state's pen register and trap-and-trace statute, leaving enforcement to the Attorney General and local prosecutors. The bill narrows consumer remedies while preserving criminal and regulatory penalties. Companies that rely on subpoena alternatives, voluntary device monitoring, or third-party data pulls should reassess litigation exposure, since private plaintiffs would lose a key statutory hook. The change also signals a broader legislative posture favoring government-led enforcement over private consumer suits in surveillance-adjacent claims. Counsel should monitor committee markup, compare the amended text against current Cal. Penal Code § 1546, and update internal risk assessments for any California-based data collection or location-tracking practices.