215 ILCS 215/ Insurance Data Security Law.

(215 ILCS 215/1)

Sec. 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Insurance Data Security Law.

(Source: P.A. 103-142, eff. 1-1-24.)

(215 ILCS 215/2)

Sec. 2. Purpose and intent.

(a) The purpose and intent of this Act is to establish standards for data security and standards for the investigation of and notification to the Director of a cybersecurity event applicable to licensees.

(b) This Act shall not be construed to create or imply a private cause of action for a violation of its provisions nor shall it be construed to curtail a private cause of action which would otherwise exist in the absence of this Act.

(Source: P.A. 103-142, eff. 1-1-24.)

(215 ILCS 215/5)

Sec. 5. Definitions. As used in this Act:

"Authorized individual" means an individual known to and screened by the licensee and determined to be necessary and appropriate to have access to the nonpublic information held by the licensee and its information systems.

"Consumer" means an individual, including, but not limited to, an applicant, policyholder, insured, beneficiary, claimant, or certificate holder who is a resident of this State and whose nonpublic information is in a licensee's possession, custody, or control.

"Cybersecurity event" means an event resulting in unauthorized access to, disruption, or misuse of an information system or information stored on such information system. "Cybersecurity event" does not include the unauthorized acquisition of encrypted nonpublic information if the encryption, process, or key is not also acquired, released, or used without authorization. "Cybersecurity event" does not include an event with regard to which the licensee has determined that the nonpublic information accessed by an unauthorized person has not been used or released and has been returned or destroyed.

"Department" means the Department of Insurance.

"Director" means the Director of Insurance.

"Encrypted" means the transformation of data into a form which results in a low probability of assigning meaning without the use of a protective process or key.

"Information security program" means the administrative, technical, and physical safeguards that a licensee uses to access, collect, distribute, process, protect, store, use, transmit, dispose of, or otherwise handle nonpublic information.

"Information system" means a discrete set of electronic information resources organized for the collection, processing, maintenance, use, sharing, dissemination, or disposition of electronic information, as well as any specialized system such as industrial and process controls systems, telephone switching and private branch exchange systems, and environmental control systems.

"Licensee" means any person licensed, authorized to operate, or registered, or required to be licensed, authorized, or registered pursuant to the insurance laws of this State. "Licensee" does not include a purchasing group or a risk retention group chartered and licensed in a state other than this State or a licensee that is acting as an assuming insurer that is domiciled in another state or jurisdiction.

"Multi-factor authentication" means authentication through verification of at least 2 of the following types of authentication factors:

(1) knowledge factors, including a password;

(2) possession factors, including a token or text message on a mobile phone; or

(3) inherence factors, including a biometric characteristic.

"Nonpublic information" means information that is not publicly available information and that is:

(1) business-related information of a licensee the tampering with which, or unauthorized disclosure, access, or use of which, would cause a material adverse impact to the business, operations, or security of the licensee;

(2) any information concerning a consumer which because of name, number, personal mark, or other identifier can be used to identify such consumer, in combination with any one or more of the following data elements:

(A) social security number;

(B) driver's license number or nondriver identification card number;

(C) financial account number, credit card number, or debit card number;

(D) any security code, access code, or password that would permit access to a consumer's financial account; or

(E) biometric records; or

(3) any information or data, except age or gender, in any form or medium created by or derived from a health care provider or a consumer and that relates to:

(A) the past, present, or future physical, mental, or behavioral health or condition of any consumer or a member of the consumer's family;

(B) the provision of health care to any consumer; or

(C) payment for the provision of health care to any consumer.

"Person" means any individual or any nongovernmental entity, including, but not limited to, any nongovernmental partnership, corporation, branch, agency, or association.

"Publicly available information" means any information that a licensee has a reasonable basis to believe is lawfully made available to the general public from federal, State, or local government records; widely distributed media; or disclosures to the general public that are required to be made by federal, State, or local law. "Publicly available information" includes information that a consumer may direct not to be made available to the general public, but that the consumer has not directed not be made available.

"Risk assessment" means the risk assessment that each licensee is required to conduct under subsection (c) of Section 10.

"Third-party service provider" means a person, not otherwise defined as a licensee, that contracts with a licensee to maintain, process, store, or otherwise is permitted access to nonpublic information through its provision of services to the licensee.

(Source: P.A. 103-142, eff. 1-1-24.)

(215 ILCS 215/10)

Sec. 10. Information security program.

(a) Commensurate with the size and complexity of the licensee, the nature and scope of the licensee's activities, including its use of third-party service providers, and the sensitivity of the nonpublic information used by the licensee or in the licensee's possession, custody, or control, each licensee shall develop, implement, and maintain a comprehensive written information security program based on the licensee's risk assessment and that contains administrative, technical, and physical safeguards for the protection of nonpublic information and the licensee's information system.

(b) A licensee's information security program shall be designed to:

(1) protect the security and confidentiality of nonpublic information and the security of the information system;

(2) protect against any threats or hazards to the security or integrity of nonpublic information and the information system;

(3) protect against unauthorized access to or use of nonpublic information;

(4) minimize the likelihood of harm to any consumer; and

(5) define and periodically reevaluate a schedule for retention of nonpublic information and a mechanism for its destruction when no longer needed, except if the information is otherwise required to be retained by law or rule or if targeted disposal is not reasonably feasible due to the manner in which the information is maintained.

(c) A licensee shall:

(1) designate one or more employees, an affiliate, or an outside vendor designated to act on behalf of the licensee who is responsible for the information security program;

(2) identify reasonably foreseeable internal or external threats that could result in unauthorized access, transmission, disclosure, misuse, alteration, or destruction of nonpublic information, including the security of information systems and nonpublic information that are accessible to or held by third-party service providers;

(3) assess the likelihood and potential damage of these threats, taking into consideration the sensitivity of the nonpublic information;

(4) assess the sufficiency of policies, procedures, information systems, and other safeguards in place to manage these threats, including consideration of threats in each relevant area of the licensee's operations, including:

(A) employee training and management;

(B) information systems, including network and software design, as well as information classification, governance, processing, storage, transmission, and disposal; and

(C) detecting, preventing, and responding to attacks, intrusions, or other systems failures; and

(5) implement information safeguards to manage the threats identified in its ongoing assessment, and, no less than annually, assess the effectiveness of the safeguards' key controls, systems, and procedures.

(d) Based on its risk assessment, the licensee shall:

(1) design its information security program to mitigate the identified risks, commensurate with the size and complexity of the licensee, the nature and scope of the licensee's activities, including its use of third-party service providers, and the sensitivity of the nonpublic information used by the licensee or in the licensee's possession, custody, or control;

(2) select and implement appropriate security measures from the following:

(A) place access controls on information systems, including controls to authenticate and permit access only to authorized individuals to protect against the unauthorized acquisition of nonpublic information;

(B) identify and manage the data, personnel, devices, systems, and facilities that enable the organization to achieve business purposes in accordance with their relative importance to business objectives and the organization's risk strategy;

(C) restrict access at physical locations containing nonpublic information only to authorized individuals;

(D) protect, by encryption or other appropriate means, all nonpublic information while being transmitted over an external network and all nonpublic information stored on a laptop computer or other portable computing or storage device or media;

(E) adopt secure development practices for in-house-developed applications utilized by the licensee and procedures for evaluating, assessing, or testing the security of externally developed applications utilized by the licensee;

(F) modify the information system in accordance with the licensee's information security program;

(G) utilize effective controls, including multifactor authentication procedures for any individual accessing nonpublic information;

(H) regularly test and monitor systems and procedures to detect actual and attempted attacks on or intrusions into information systems;

(I) include audit trails within the information security program designed to detect and respond to cybersecurity events and designed to reconstruct material financial transactions sufficient to support normal operations and obligations of the licensee;

(J) implement measures to protect against destruction, loss, or damage of nonpublic information due to environmental hazards, including fire and water damage, other catastrophes, or technological failures; and

(K) develop, implement, and maintain procedures for the secure disposal of nonpublic information in any format;

(3) include cybersecurity risks in the licensee's enterprise risk management process;

(4) stay informed regarding emerging threats or vulnerabilities and utilize reasonable security measures when sharing information relative to the character of the sharing and the type of information shared; and

(5) provide its personnel with cybersecurity awareness training that is updated as necessary to reflect risks identified by the licensee in the risk assessment.

(e) If the licensee has a board of directors, the board or an appropriate committee of the board shall, at a minimum:

(1) require the licensee's executive management or its delegates to develop, implement, and maintain the licensee's information security program;

(2) require the licensee's executive management or its delegates to report in writing, at least annually, the following information:

(A) the overall status of the information security program and the licensee's compliance with this Act; and

(B) material matters related to the information security program, addressing issues such as risk assessment, risk management and control decisions, third-party service provider arrangements, results of testing, cybersecurity events or violations and management's responses thereto, and recommendations for changes in the information security program; and

(3) if executive management delegates any of its responsibilities under this Section, it shall oversee the development, implementation, and maintenance of the licensee's information security program prepared by the delegate and shall receive a report from the delegate complying with the requirements of the report to the board of directors.

(f) A licensee shall exercise due diligence in selecting its third-party service provider and a licensee shall require a third-party service provider to implement appropriate administrative, technical, and physical measures to protect and secure the information systems and nonpublic information that are accessible to or held by the third-party service provider.

(g) The licensee shall monitor, evaluate, and adjust, as appropriate, the information security program consistent with any relevant changes in technology, the sensitivity of its nonpublic information, internal or external threats to information, and the licensee's own changing business arrangements, including mergers and acquisitions, alliances and joint ventures, outsourcing arrangements, and changes to information systems.

(h) As part of its information security program, a licensee shall establish a written incident response plan designed to promptly respond to and recover from any cybersecurity event that compromises the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of nonpublic information in its possession, the licensee's information systems, or the continuing functionality of any aspect of the licensee's business or operations. The incident response plan shall address the following areas:

(1) the internal process for responding to a cybersecurity event;

(2) the goals of the incident response plan;

(3) the definition of clear roles, responsibilities, and levels of decision-making authority;

(4) external and internal communications and information sharing;

(5) identification of requirements for the remediation of any identified weaknesses in information systems and associated controls;

(6) documentation and reporting regarding cybersecurity events and related incident response activities; and

(7) the evaluation and revision of the incident response plan following a cybersecurity event, as necessary.

(i) Annually, an insurer domiciled in this State shall submit to the Director a written statement by April 15 certifying that the insurer is in compliance with the requirements set forth in this Section. Each insurer shall maintain for examination by the Department all records, schedules, and data supporting this certificate for a period of 5 years. To the extent an insurer has identified areas, systems, or processes that require material improvement, updating, or redesign, the insurer shall document the identification and the remedial efforts planned and underway to address such areas, systems, or processes. The documentation of identified areas, systems, or processes must be available for inspection by the Director.

(j) Licensees shall comply with subsection (f) 2 years after the effective date of this Act, and shall comply with all other subsections of this Section one year after the effective date of this Act.

(Source: P.A. 103-142, eff. 1-1-24.)

(215 ILCS 215/15)

Sec. 15. Investigation of a cybersecurity event.

(a) If the licensee learns that a cybersecurity event has occurred or may have occurred, the licensee, or an outside vendor or service provider designated to act on behalf of the licensee, shall conduct a prompt investigation.

(b) During the investigation the licensee, or an outside vendor or service provider designated to act on behalf of the licensee, shall, at a minimum, comply with as many of the following as possible:

(1) determine whether a cybersecurity event has occurred;

(2) assess the nature and scope of the cybersecurity event;

(3) identify any nonpublic information that may have been involved in the cybersecurity event; and

(4) perform or oversee reasonable measures to restore the security of the information systems compromised in the cybersecurity event in order to prevent further unauthorized acquisition, release, or use of nonpublic information in the licensee's possession, custody, or control.

(c) If the licensee learns that a cybersecurity event has occurred or may have occurred in a system maintained by a third-party service provider, the licensee will complete the steps listed in subsection (b) or confirm and document that the third-party service provider has completed those steps.

(d) The licensee shall maintain records concerning all cybersecurity events for a period of at least 5 years from the date of the cybersecurity event and shall produce those records upon demand of the Director.

(Source: P.A. 103-142, eff. 1-1-24.)

(215 ILCS 215/20)

Sec. 20. Notification of a cybersecurity event.

(a) A licensee shall notify the Director as promptly as possible but no later than 3 business days after a determination that a cybersecurity event has occurred when either of the following criteria has been met:

(1) this State is the licensee's state of domicile, in the case of an insurer, or this State is the licensee's home state, in the case of an insurance producer, as those terms are defined in Article XXXI of the Illinois Insurance Code, and the cybersecurity event has a reasonable likelihood of materially harming any consumer residing in this State or any material part of the normal operations of the licensee; or

(2) the licensee reasonably believes that the nonpublic information involved is of 250 or more consumers residing in this State and that is either of the following:

(A) a cybersecurity event impacting the licensee of which notice is required to be provided to any government body, self-regulatory agency, or any other supervisory body pursuant to any State or federal law; or

(B) a cybersecurity event that has a reasonable likelihood of materially harming:

(i) any consumer residing in this State; or

(ii) any material part of the normal operations of the licensee.

(b) A licensee shall provide as much of the following information as possible:

(1) the date of the cybersecurity event;

(2) a description of how the information was exposed, lost, stolen, or breached, including the specific roles and responsibilities of third-party service providers, if any;

(3) how the cybersecurity event was discovered;

(4) whether any lost, stolen, or breached information has been recovered and if so, how it was recovered;

(5) the identity of the source of the cybersecurity event;

(6) whether the licensee has filed a police report or has notified any regulatory, government, or law enforcement agencies and, if so, when such notification was provided;

(7) a description of the specific types of information acquired without authorization, including types of medical information, types of financial information, or types of information allowing identification of the consumer;

(8) the period during which the information system was compromised by the cybersecurity event;

(9) the number of total consumers in this State affected by the cybersecurity event; the licensee shall provide the best estimate in the initial report to the Director and update this estimate with each subsequent report to the Director pursuant to this Section;

(10) the results of any internal review identifying a lapse in either automated controls or internal procedures, or confirming that all automated controls or internal procedures were followed;

(11) a description of efforts being undertaken to remediate the situation which permitted the cybersecurity event to occur;

(12) a copy of the licensee's privacy policy and a statement outlining the steps the licensee will take to investigate and notify consumers affected by the cybersecurity event; and

(13) the name of a contact person who is both familiar with the cybersecurity event and authorized to act for the licensee.

The licensee shall provide the information in electronic form as directed by the Director. The licensee shall have a continuing obligation to update and supplement initial and subsequent notifications to the Director regarding material changes to previously provided information relating to the cybersecurity event.

(c) Licensees shall comply with the Personal Information Protection Act, as applicable, and provide a copy of the notice sent to consumers under that statute to the Director when a licensee is required to notify the Director under subsection (a).

(d) If a licensee becomes aware of a cybersecurity event in a system maintained by a third-party service provider, the licensee shall treat the event as it would under subsection (a) unless the third-party service provider provides the notice required under subsection (a) to the Director. The computation of licensee's deadlines shall begin on the day after the third-party service provider notifies the licensee of the cybersecurity event or the licensee otherwise has actual knowledge of the cybersecurity event, whichever is sooner.

(e) Nothing in this Act shall prevent or abrogate an agreement between a licensee and another licensee, a third-party service provider, or any other party to fulfill any of the investigation requirements imposed under Section 15 or notice requirements imposed under this Section.

(f) In the case of a cybersecurity event involving nonpublic information that is used by the licensee that is acting as an assuming insurer or in the possession, custody, or control of a licensee that is acting as an assuming insurer and that does not have a direct contractual relationship with the affected consumers, the assuming insurer shall notify its affected ceding insurers and the Director of its state of domicile within 3 business days after making the determination that a cybersecurity event has occurred.

In the case of a cybersecurity event involving nonpublic information that is in the possession, custody, or control of a third-party service provider of a licensee that is an assuming insurer, the assuming insurer shall notify its affected ceding insurers and the Director of its state of domicile within 3 business days after receiving notice from its third-party service provider that a cybersecurity event has occurred.

The ceding insurers that have a direct contractual relationship with affected consumers shall fulfill the consumer notification requirements imposed under the Personal Information Protection Act and any other notification requirements relating to a cybersecurity event imposed under this Section.

(g) In the case of a cybersecurity event involving nonpublic information that is in the possession, custody, or control of a licensee that is an insurer or its third-party service provider and for which a consumer accessed the insurer's services through an independent insurance producer, the insurer shall notify the producers of record of all affected consumers as soon as practicable as directed by the Director. The insurer is excused from this obligation for those instances in which it does not have the current producer of record information for any individual consumer.

(Source: P.A. 103-142, eff. 1-1-24.)

(215 ILCS 215/25)

Sec. 25. Power of Director.

(a) The Director shall have power to examine and investigate the affairs of any licensee to determine whether the licensee has been or is engaged in any conduct in violation of this Act. This power is in addition to the powers which the Director has under the Illinois Insurance Code, including Sections 132, 132.3, 132.4, 133, 401, 402, 403, and 425 of the Illinois Insurance Code. Any investigation or examination shall be conducted pursuant to the Illinois Insurance Code, including Sections 132, 132.3, 132.4, 133, 401, 402, 403, and 425 of the Illinois Insurance Code.

(b) Whenever the Director has reason to believe that a licensee has been or is engaged in conduct in this State which violates this Act, the Director may take action that is necessary or appropriate to enforce the provisions of this Act.

(Source: P.A. 103-142, eff. 1-1-24.)

(215 ILCS 215/30)

Sec. 30. Confidentiality.

(a) Any documents, materials, or other information in the control or possession of the Department that are furnished by a licensee or an employee or agent thereof acting on behalf of licensee pursuant to subsection (i) of Section 10, subsection (b) of Section 20, or that are obtained by the Director in an investigation or examination pursuant to Section 25 shall be confidential by law and privileged, shall not be subject to the Freedom of Information Act, shall not be subject to subpoena, and shall not be subject to discovery or admissible in evidence in any private civil action. However, the Director is authorized to use the documents, materials, or other information in the furtherance of any regulatory or legal action brought as a part of the Director's duties.

(b) Neither the Director nor any person who received documents, materials, or other information while acting under the authority of the Director shall be permitted or required to testify in any private civil action concerning any confidential documents, materials, or information subject to subsection (a).

(c) In order to assist in the performance of the Director's duties under this Act, the Director:

(1) may share documents, materials, or other information, including the confidential and privileged documents, materials, or information subject to subsection (a), with other State, federal, and international regulatory agencies, with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and its affiliates or subsidiaries, and with State, federal, and international law enforcement authorities, if the recipient agrees in writing to maintain the confidentiality and privileged status of the document, material, or other information;

(2) may receive documents, materials, or information, including otherwise confidential and privileged documents, materials, or information, from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and its affiliates or subsidiaries and from regulatory and law enforcement officials of other foreign or domestic jurisdictions, and shall maintain as confidential or privileged any document, material, or information received with notice or the understanding that it is confidential or privileged under the laws of the jurisdiction that is the source of the document, material, or information;

(3) may share documents, materials, or other information subject to subsection (a), with a third-party consultant or vendor if the consultant agrees in writing to maintain the confidentiality and privileged status of the document, material, or other information; and

(4) may enter into agreements governing sharing and use of information consistent with this subsection.

(d) No waiver of any applicable privilege or claim of confidentiality in the documents, materials, or information shall occur as a result of disclosure to the Director under this Section or as a result of sharing as authorized in subsection (c).

(e) Nothing in this Act shall prohibit the Director from releasing final, adjudicated actions that are open to public inspection pursuant to the Illinois Insurance Code to a database or other clearinghouse service maintained by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and its affiliates or subsidiaries.

(Source: P.A. 103-142, eff. 1-1-24.)

(215 ILCS 215/35)

Sec. 35. Exceptions.

(a) The following exceptions shall apply to this Act:

(1) A licensee with fewer than 50 employees, including any independent contractors, is exempt from Section 10.

(2) A licensee that is subject to, governed by, and compliant with the privacy, security, and breach notification rules issued by the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Parts 160 and 164 of Title 45 of the Code of Federal Regulations, established pursuant to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, Public Law 104-191, and the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act, Public Law 111-5, HITECH, and that maintains nonpublic information in the same manner as protected health information pursuant to an information security program shall be considered to meet the requirements of Section 10 and Section 15 of this Act. To claim this exemption, the licensee must submit an annual statement by April 15 certifying its compliance with the applicable provisions of federal law referenced in this paragraph.

(3) An employee, agent, representative, or designee of a licensee that is also a licensee is exempt from Section 10 and need not develop its own information security program to the extent that the employee, agent, representative, or designee is covered by the information security program of the other licensee.

(b) If a licensee ceases to qualify for an exception, the licensee shall demonstrate a good faith effort to comply with this Act within 180 days and shall certify compliance in accordance with subsection (i) of Section 10 no sooner than one year after ceasing to qualify for an exception.

(Source: P.A. 103-142, eff. 1-1-24.)

(215 ILCS 215/40)

Sec. 40. Penalties. In the case of a violation of this Act, a licensee may be penalized in accordance with the provisions of the Illinois Insurance Code, including Section 403A of the Illinois Insurance Code.

(Source: P.A. 103-142, eff. 1-1-24.)

(215 ILCS 215/45)

Sec. 45. Rules. The Department may, in accordance with the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act and Section 401 of the Illinois Insurance Code, adopt such rules as shall be necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act.

(Source: P.A. 103-142, eff. 1-1-24.)

(215 ILCS 215/50)

Sec. 50. Severability. If any provision of this Act or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity of that provision or application does not affect other provisions or applications of this Act that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application.

(Source: P.A. 103-142, eff. 1-1-24.)

(215 ILCS 215/105)

Sec. 105. (Amendatory provisions; text omitted).

(Source: P.A. 103-142, eff. 1-1-24; text omitted.)

(215 ILCS 215/999)

Sec. 999. Effective date. This Act takes effect January 1, 2024.

(Source: P.A. 103-142, eff. 1-1-24.)