Can I share personal information about my customers with third parties in North Carolina? What are the requirements?

Sharing Personal Information of Customers with Third Parties in North Carolina

Based on the context documents, sharing personal information about customers with third parties in North Carolina is subject to certain restrictions and requirements.

Personally Identifiable Information of Public Utility Customers

According to NCGS 132-1.14, personally identifiable information obtained by the Public Staff of the Utilities Commission from customers requesting assistance from the Public Staff regarding rate or service disputes with a public utility is not considered a public record. However, the Public Staff may disclose personally identifiable information of a customer to the public utility involved in the matter for the purpose of investigating such disputes. Such personally identifiable information is a public record to the extent disclosed by the customer in a complaint filed with the Commission pursuant to G.S. 62-73. For purposes of this section, “personally identifiable information” means the customer’s name, physical address, e-mail address, telephone number, and public utility account number.

Federal Privacy Disclosure Notice Requirements

Under NCGS 58-39-26, insurance institutions or agents must provide a clear and conspicuous notice to all applicants and policyholders, in written or electronic form, of their policies and practices with respect to disclosing nonpublic personal information to affiliates and nonaffiliated third parties, consistent with section 502 of Public Law 106-102. The notice must include the policies and practices of the insurance institution or agent with respect to disclosing nonpublic personal information of persons who have ceased to be customers of the financial institution, protecting the nonpublic personal information of consumers, and the categories of nonpublic personal information that are collected by the insurance institution or agent. The notice must also include the policies that the insurance institution or agent maintains to protect the confidentiality and security of nonpublic personal information in accordance with section 501 of Public Law 106-102.

Notice of Insurance Information Practices

Under NCGS 58-39-25, an insurance institution or agent must provide a notice of information practices to all applicants or policyholders in connection with insurance transactions. The notice must state whether personal information may be collected from persons other than the individual or individuals proposed for coverage, the types of personal information that may be collected and the types of sources and investigative techniques that may be used to collect such information, and the types of disclosures identified in subsections (2), (3), (4), (5), (6), (9), (11), (12), and (13) of this section. The notice must be in writing and provided at the time of the delivery of the insurance policy or certificate when personal information is collected only from the applicant or from public records, or at the time the collection of personal information is initiated when personal information is collected from a source other than the applicant or public records.

Conclusion

Based on the above information, sharing personal information about customers with third parties in North Carolina is subject to certain restrictions and requirements. Generally, personally identifiable information should be kept confidential and not made available to the general public. When collecting personal identifying information, government agencies should do so only for legitimate purposes or when required by law, and should clearly document the need for such information. Insurance institutions or agents must provide a clear and conspicuous notice to all applicants and policyholders of their policies and practices with respect to disclosing nonpublic personal information to affiliates and nonaffiliated third parties, and must provide a notice of information practices to all applicants or policyholders in connection with insurance transactions.

Jurisdiction

North Carolina

• Privacy