Laws & Statutes › CA › CA-SB-468
SB-468
CA · State · USA
CA
USA
● Failed
Effective Date
2026-01-01
California SB 468 — High-risk artificial intelligence systems: duty to protect personal information
SB 468 would impose a duty on covered deployers — businesses that deploy high-risk AI systems processing personal information — to develop, implement, and maintain a comprehensive written information security program with administrative, technical, and physical safeguards scaled to the deployer's size, resources, and data holdings. The program must include detailed requirements covering employee designation, risk assessment, training, access controls, encryption, third-party service provider oversight, breach response documentation, and at least annual review. Violations constitute per se deceptive trade acts under the Unfair Competition Law, enforceable by the Attorney General and through existing UCL private enforcement mechanisms. The California Privacy Protection Agency is authorized to adopt implementing regulations. The bill died pursuant to Joint Rule 56 and did not advance.
Legislative History
2025-02-19 introduced Introduced. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. To print.
2025-02-26 committee referral Referred to Com. on JUD.
2025-04-23 committee referral From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 11. Noes 0. Page 835.) (April 22). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
Mapped Requirements
G-01 AI Governance Program & Documentation
Official Sources
Full Text ↗
Entry Last Reviewed
2026-04-01
AI generated
Summary

SB 468 would impose a duty on covered deployers — businesses that deploy high-risk AI systems processing personal information — to develop, implement, and maintain a comprehensive written information security program with administrative, technical, and physical safeguards scaled to the deployer's size, resources, and data holdings. The program must include detailed requirements covering employee designation, risk assessment, training, access controls, encryption, third-party service provider oversight, breach response documentation, and at least annual review. Violations constitute per se deceptive trade acts under the Unfair Competition Law, enforceable by the Attorney General and through existing UCL private enforcement mechanisms. The California Privacy Protection Agency is authorized to adopt implementing regulations. The bill died pursuant to Joint Rule 56 and did not advance.

Enforcement & Penalties
Enforcement Authority
California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA) is authorized to adopt implementing regulations. Violations constitute deceptive trade acts or practices under the Unfair Competition Law (Bus. & Prof. Code § 17200 et seq.), which is enforceable by the Attorney General, district attorneys, county counsel, and city attorneys. The UCL also permits private suits by individuals who have suffered injury in fact and lost money or property as a result of the unfair competition. No standalone private right of action is created by this bill; private enforcement is available only through the existing UCL framework.
Penalties
Violations are per se deceptive trade acts under the UCL (Bus. & Prof. Code § 17200). UCL remedies include injunctive relief and restitution. Civil penalties up to $2,500 per violation are available in government enforcement actions under the UCL. The UCL does not provide for actual damages or attorney fees for private plaintiffs; private UCL plaintiffs may obtain injunctive relief and restitution but must demonstrate injury in fact and loss of money or property.
Who Is Covered
"Covered deployer" means a business that deploys a high-risk artificial intelligence system that processes personal information.
What Is Covered
"High-risk artificial intelligence system" has the same meaning as "high-risk automated decision system," as that term is defined in Section 11546.45.5 of the Government Code.
Compliance Obligations 6 obligations · click obligation ID to open requirement page
G-01 AI Governance Program & Documentation · G-01.1G-01.2G-01.6 · Deployer · Automated Decisionmaking
Civ. Code § 1798.91.3(a)-(c)(1)-(2)(10)
Plain Language
Covered deployers must develop, implement, and maintain a comprehensive written information security program containing administrative, technical, and physical safeguards scaled to their size, resources, data volume, and confidentiality needs. The program must be consistent with existing state and federal data protection requirements, designate one or more employees to maintain it, and be reviewed at least annually and whenever there is a material change in business practices affecting personal information security. This is a continuing obligation — the program must be maintained, not merely created.
Statutory Text
(a) A covered deployer conducting business in this state shall have a duty to protect personal information held by the covered deployer as provided by this section. (b) A covered deployer whose high-risk artificial intelligence systems process personal information shall develop, implement, and maintain a comprehensive information security program that is written in one or more readily accessible parts and contains administrative, technical, and physical safeguards that are appropriate for all of the following: (1) The covered deployer's size, scope, and type of business. (2) The amount of resources available to the covered deployer. (3) The amount of data stored by the covered deployer. (4) The need for security and confidentiality of personal information stored by the covered deployer. (c) The comprehensive information security program required by subdivision (a) shall meet all of the following requirements: (1) The program shall incorporate safeguards that are consistent with the safeguards for the protection of personal information and information of a similar character under state or federal laws and regulations applicable to the covered deployer. (2) The program shall include the designation of one or more employees of the covered deployer to maintain the program. (10) The program shall require the regular review of the scope of the program's security measures that must occur subject to both of the following timeframes: (A) At least annually. (B) Whenever there is a material change in the covered deployer's business practices that may reasonably affect the security or integrity of records containing personal information.
G-01 AI Governance Program & Documentation · G-01.3 · Deployer · Automated Decisionmaking
Civ. Code § 1798.91.3(c)(3)-(6)(8)(9)(11)
Plain Language
The information security program must include detailed operational components: risk identification and assessment for internal and external threats to personal information; ongoing employee and contractor training on security procedures; mandatory compliance with program policies with disciplinary measures for violations; policies governing off-premises storage, access, and transportation of personal information records; measures to revoke terminated employees' access; physical access restrictions including locked storage; regular monitoring to prevent unauthorized access; and documented breach response including mandatory post-incident review. These are the operational elements that give the program practical effect beyond the structural requirements in § 1798.91.3(a)-(b).
Statutory Text
(3) The program shall require the identification and assessment of reasonably foreseeable internal and external risks to the security, confidentiality, and integrity of any electronic, paper, or other record containing personal information, and the establishment of a process for evaluating and improving, as necessary, the effectiveness of the current safeguards for limiting those risks, including by all of the following: (A) Requiring ongoing employee and contractor education and training, including education and training for temporary employees and contractors of the covered deployer, on the proper use of security procedures and protocols and the importance of personal information security. (B) Mandating employee compliance with policies and procedures established under the program. (C) Providing a means for detecting and preventing security system failures. (4) The program shall include security policies for the covered deployer's employees relating to the storage, access, and transportation of records containing personal information outside of the covered deployer's physical business premises. (5) The program shall provide disciplinary measures for violations of a policy or procedure established under the program. (6) The program shall include measures for preventing a terminated employee from accessing records containing personal information. (8) The program shall provide reasonable restrictions on physical access to records containing personal information, including by requiring the records containing the data to be stored in a locked facility, storage area, or container. (9) The program shall include regular monitoring to ensure that the program is operating in a manner reasonably calculated to prevent unauthorized access to or unauthorized use of personal information and, as necessary, upgrading information safeguards to limit the risk of unauthorized access to or unauthorized use of personal information. (11) The program shall require the documentation of responsive actions taken in connection with any incident involving a breach of security, including a mandatory postincident review of each event and the actions taken, if any, in response to that event to make changes in business practices relating to protection of personal information.
G-01 AI Governance Program & Documentation · Deployer · Automated Decisionmaking
Civ. Code § 1798.91.3(c)(7)
Plain Language
Covered deployers must include in their information security program policies for overseeing third-party service providers that handle personal information. This includes conducting reasonable due diligence in selecting and retaining providers capable of maintaining appropriate security, and contractually requiring those providers to implement and maintain security measures for personal information. This is a supply-chain security obligation — deployers cannot outsource data processing without ensuring downstream protections.
Statutory Text
(7) The program shall provide policies for the supervision of third-party service providers that include both of the following: (A) Taking reasonable steps to select and retain third-party service providers that are capable of maintaining appropriate security measures to protect personal information consistent with applicable law. (B) Requiring third-party service providers by contract to implement and maintain appropriate security measures for personal information.
G-01 AI Governance Program & Documentation · Deployer · Automated Decisionmaking
Civ. Code § 1798.91.3(c)(12)
Plain Language
To the extent feasible, the information security program must include specific technical security controls: secure user authentication (credential management, password security, account lockout); role-based access controls limiting personal information access to employees and contractors who need it; encryption for data in transit over public or wireless networks and at rest on portable devices; system monitoring for unauthorized access; current firewall protection and OS patches for internet-connected systems; and current malware protection software with regular updates. These are prescriptive technical minimums — deployers may implement higher-security alternatives. The 'to the extent feasible' qualifier provides some flexibility for smaller organizations.
Statutory Text
(12) The program shall, to the extent feasible, include all of the following procedures and protocols with respect to computer system security requirements or procedures and protocols providing a higher degree of security, for the protection of personal information: (A) The use of secure user authentication protocols that include all of the following features: (i) The control of user login credentials and other identifiers. (ii) The use of a reasonably secure method of assigning and selecting passwords or using unique identifier technologies, which may include biometrics or token devices. (iii) The control of data security passwords to ensure that the passwords are kept in a location and a format that do not compromise the security of the data the passwords protect. (iv) The restriction of access to only active users and active user accounts. (v) The blocking of access to user credentials or identification after multiple unsuccessful attempts to gain access. (B) The use of secure access control measures that include both of the following: (i) The restriction of access to records and files containing personal information to only employees or contractors who need access to that personal information to perform the job duties of the employees or contractors. (ii) The assignment of a unique identification and a password to each employee or contractor with access to a computer containing personal information, that may not be a vendor-supplied default password, or the use of another protocol reasonably designed to maintain the integrity of the security of the access controls to personal information. (C) The encryption of both of the following: (i) Transmitted records and files containing personal information that will travel across public networks. (ii) Data containing personal information that is transmitted wirelessly. (D) The use of reasonable monitoring of systems for unauthorized use of or access to personal information. (E) The encryption of all personal information stored on laptop computers or other portable devices. (F) For files containing personal information on a system that is connected to the internet, the use of reasonably current firewall protection and operating system security patches that are reasonably designed to maintain the integrity of the personal information. (G) The use of both of the following: (i) A reasonably current version of system security agent software that shall include malware protection and reasonably current patches and virus definitions. (ii) A version of a system security agent software that is supportable with current patches and virus definitions, and is set to receive the most current security updates on a regular basis.
Other · Automated Decisionmaking
Civ. Code § 1798.91.3(d)
Plain Language
Violations of the information security program requirements are per se deceptive trade acts under California's Unfair Competition Law (Bus. & Prof. Code § 17200). This activates the UCL's existing enforcement framework — including Attorney General enforcement, district attorney enforcement, and private UCL suits by persons who have suffered injury in fact — but creates no new affirmative compliance obligation beyond those already imposed by the substantive provisions of § 1798.91.3(a)-(c).
Statutory Text
(d) A violation of this section by a covered deployer constitutes a deceptive trade act or practice under the Unfair Competition Law (Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 17200) of Part 2 of Division 7 of the Business and Professions Code).
Other · Automated Decisionmaking
Civ. Code § 1798.91.4(a)-(b)
Plain Language
The California Privacy Protection Agency is authorized to adopt implementing regulations under the Administrative Procedure Act, except that fee-related regulations are exempt from APA requirements. This grants the CPPA rulemaking power to flesh out the information security program requirements but imposes no direct compliance obligation on covered deployers. Future CPPA regulations could create additional obligations not yet specified in the statute.
Statutory Text
(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), the California Privacy Protection Agency may adopt regulations pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code) to implement and administer this title. (b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), any regulation adopted by the California Privacy Protection Agency to establish fees authorized by this title shall be exempt from the Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code).