The New Era of Privacy Enforcement: Why CCPA Compliance Can’t Wait

Similarly, in March 2025, American Honda Motor Co. settled with the CPPA for $632,500 over allegations related to its cookie consent interface and privacy request procedures. The CPPA noted that Honda’s processes made it unnecessarily difficult for consumers to exercise their privacy rights, such as opting out of data sharing, and that contracts with advertising partners lacked required CCPA language.

These cases illustrate that even well-intentioned companies can encounter compliance challenges amid evolving regulations and complex digital infrastructures. They serve as reminders of the importance of regular audits, thorough testing of consent mechanisms, and clear communication with vendors. Proactive measures can help organizations navigate the intricate landscape of data privacy compliance effectively.

These cases underscore a critical lesson: relying solely on outdated, manual processes or third-party cookie banners is no longer viable. Businesses are ultimately responsible for ensuring their privacy practices meet CCPA standards, regardless of the tools they use. And with CPPA audits becoming more frequent, it’s not a question of if a business will be scrutinized—but when. Now more than ever, a solid privacy framework is a foundational pillar for organizational resilience and trust.

The Expanding Patchwork of State Privacy Laws

While federal data privacy legislation remains in flux, individual states are asserting themselves. As of April 2025, more than 20 U.S. states, including California, Virginia, Colorado, and Connecticut, have enacted comprehensive data privacy laws. Each one brings its own definitions, consent requirements, enforcement mechanisms, and reporting mandates.

And the trend is accelerating. Starting in January 2025, five new state privacy laws—in Delaware, Iowa, Nebraska, New Hampshire, and New Jersey—took effect. These laws are not just carbon copies of the CCPA. They come with new rules on sensitive data categories, expanded definitions of consumer rights, and distinct thresholds for compliance. For businesses operating nationally, the patchwork has become a tangled web.

This fragmented landscape presents a major challenge. Even well-intentioned companies may find themselves out of compliance simply by failing to adapt quickly enough. The burden is especially high for legal, compliance, and marketing operations teams who must navigate overlapping (and sometimes conflicting) obligations. As each state develops its own take on enforcement priorities, data classification, and breach notification standards, privacy teams must be proactive in tracking and interpreting changes—while building workflows that can quickly adjust to regional nuances.

Beyond fines, non-compliance can cost businesses in other significant ways. Under the updated CCPA enforcement guidelines effective in 2025, administrative fines can reach up to $2,663 per violation. For intentional violations or infractions involving minors’ data, the penalties spike to $7,988 per incident.

But that’s just the beginning. Public exposure of privacy missteps can erode consumer trust, damage brand reputation, and result in customer churn. In an age where consumers are more privacy-conscious than ever, a single compliance failure can lead to headlines, social media backlash, and class-action lawsuits. The financial risk is compounded by the operational strain of responding to legal inquiries, handling investigations, and remediating issues post-violation.

The impact on growth and innovation is also worth noting. Many legal and compliance teams are asked to do more with less—juggling regulatory updates, vendor oversight, and privacy requests with limited tools and resources. This often leaves little time for proactive collaboration with product and marketing teams, despite their shared goals. Gaps in compliance aren’t signs of failure—they’re signs of overburdened systems. The right support can empower these teams to not only meet requirements, but to actively fuel the organization’s growth and innovation.

For many privacy teams, the old ways of managing compliance—manual audits, spreadsheets, and reactive reviews—are no longer sustainable. As privacy laws continue to evolve and enforcement increases, these teams are being asked to keep pace with limited resources and ever-growing responsibilities. That’s where automation can make a meaningful difference. It supports scale, enables real-time consent enforcement, and helps maintain a clear, defensible record of compliance—lightening the load and empowering teams to focus on strategic initiatives rather than chasing down operational issues.

CHEQ Enforce is purpose-built to support this level of compliance agility. Key capabilities include:

• Automated Policy Enforcement: Apply privacy rules across all tags, vendors, and web pages without manual intervention.

• Real-Time Observability: Instantly visualize what data is being collected, shared, or blocked across your ecosystem.

• Consent-Driven Data Control: Enforce user preferences dynamically to prevent unauthorized tracking or data sharing.

• Simplified Compliance Reporting: Generate audit-ready reports that demonstrate ongoing governance and adherence.

By automating these functions, organizations free up internal teams to focus on strategy and risk mitigation—not chasing down misfiring tags or outdated cookie settings. More importantly, they gain a competitive edge: agility in compliance translates into agility in business.

Privacy teams today are already doing their best to stay ahead of the curve—juggling updates, audits, and new enforcement trends in a constantly shifting environment. Building a flexible, responsive privacy program isn’t just a smart strategy—it’s a necessity. With so much changing so quickly, having a foundation that supports adaptation and scalability can help ease the pressure and make compliance more manageable day to day.

We recognize the demands on compliance teams today—navigating evolving regulations, limited resources, and growing accountability. To help ease that pressure and support more sustainable privacy operations, here are a few practical and empowering approaches:

• Monitor Evolving Regulations: We know keeping up with constant changes in privacy laws can be a full-time job. Designating a point person—or team—can help ease the burden and create consistency in how updates are tracked and shared across departments.

• Conduct Regular Assessments: Routine checks can feel overwhelming when you’re already stretched thin. But even small, consistent audits can help surface issues early—before they become bigger problems. It’s not about perfection, it’s about staying informed and proactive in a way that works with your existing capacity.

• Invest in Scalable Solutions: Many teams know the tools they need—but time and resources are real constraints. Prioritizing solutions that reduce manual lift and integrate with existing workflows can make meaningful progress without overwhelming your team.

• Train Your Teams: Everyone wants to do the right thing, but shifting regulations and complex workflows can leave teams guessing. Offering practical, accessible training supports shared ownership and removes uncertainty without adding extra pressure.

• Engage in Cross-Functional Collaboration: When privacy isn’t siloed, it becomes more manageable. Collaboration helps spread the effort, reduce blind spots, and turn compliance into a team win—not just a legal obligation.

Today’s privacy landscape is more demanding than ever, and we recognize the incredible efforts teams are already making to keep up. With CPPA enforcement increasing and state-level laws continuing to evolve, many organizations are facing more pressure with fewer resources. This is why forward-thinking teams are leaning into automation, streamlining processes, and creating better visibility across their data environments—not just to remain compliant, but to build long-term trust and operational confidence. It’s not about being reactive or perfect—it’s about getting the support needed to manage complexity and continue moving forward.

Because in today’s digital economy, privacy isn’t just a legal obligation—it’s a business imperative.