Virginia bans sale of geolocation data
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On April 13, 2026, Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger signed into law S.B. 388, which amends the Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act (“VCDPA”) to prohibit the sale of geolocation data. Notably, the VCDPA defines “sale” more narrowly than other state comprehensive privacy laws, as “the exchange of personal data for monetary consideration by the controller to a third party.”
The ban on the sale of geolocation data goes into effect on July 1, 2026.
Virginia follows Maryland and Oregon in banning the sale of geolocation data. Both Maryland and Oregon more broadly define “sale” to mean the exchange of personal data “for monetary or other valuable consideration.” Virginia joins several other states that have recently proposed legislation with similar bans, including California, Massachusetts, Vermont and Washington State. The legislative activity follows regulatory scrutiny on the sale of geolocation data, including the California Attorney General’s investigation into the location data industry in March 2025, and a 2024 FTC settlement banning a data broker from selling geolocation data.
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