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California’s SB 690, signed September 30, 2026, changes who can sue over a specific kind of alleged online surveillance under the state’s wiretapping law. Starting January 1, 2027, only the California Attorney General may bring a claim against a private actor under Penal Code Section 638.51 when the alleged violation arises from conduct on a website, online application, or mobile application. The change does not eliminate all private claims under California’s Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA), or provide a blanket exemption for website tracking.
What SB 690 changes
SB 690 narrows private enforcement of Section 638.51, CIPA’s pen-register and trap-and-trace provision, for a defined category of online conduct. Under the amendment as described by current legal analyses, an action against a private actor for an alleged Section 638.51 violation arising from conduct on a website or application may be brought only by the Attorney General. Morgan Lewis reproduces the statutory language; DLA Piper also describes the enacted change.
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This is a change to who may bring specified claims, not a repeal of CIPA or a general declaration that commercial tracking is lawful. Nor does it settle whether Section 638.51 applied to internet communications in the first place; Fenwick notes that question remains distinct from the new enforcement rule.
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Which claims are affected—and which are not
| Claim or conduct | Effect of SB 690 as reported |
|---|---|
| Private claim under Section 638.51 tied to website, online-application, or mobile-application conduct | Against a private actor, only the Attorney General may bring the specified action. |
| Private claims under CIPA Sections 631 or 632 | Not eliminated by this amendment, according to current legal analyses. |
| Federal Wiretap Act or other applicable legal theories | Not foreclosed by this amendment; whether a claim applies or succeeds depends on its facts and governing law. |
| Section 638.51 claims not alleged to arise from the specified online conduct | The described restriction does not establish that these claims are barred; their treatment depends on the statute and circumstances. |
A Consumer Privacy World analysis likewise distinguishes the Section 638.51 change from other potential CIPA and federal claims. The amendment should therefore not be read as ending website-tracking litigation generally.
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When it takes effect and what retroactivity means
Legal analyses report that Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB 690 on September 30, 2026, and that it takes effect January 1, 2027. They also report retroactive reach to qualifying pending actions commenced during the two years before that operative date, including actions commenced on or after January 1, 2025. That description is limited to pending actions within the provision’s scope; it does not mean every past or resolved case automatically disappears. See Morgan Lewis and DLA Piper.
- September 30, 2026: reported signing date.
- January 1, 2027: reported effective date.
- Pending matters: the reported retroactive provision reaches qualifying pending cases commenced on or after January 1, 2025; it is not an automatic dismissal rule for every case filed since then.
Why website tracking became part of the debate
Section 638.51 was enacted as part of a statute addressing wiretapping and related surveillance. In recent litigation, plaintiffs have argued that advertising or analytics technologies captured IP addresses or other metadata in ways that implicate the provision. Those are allegations and legal theories—not a judicial finding that every analytics or advertising tool violates CIPA.
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DLA Piper identifies Section 638.51’s $5,000-per-violation statutory damages provision as one factor contributing to litigation. That figure is context about the existing provision, not a new penalty created by SB 690. The change is focused on private enforcement of a defined class of online Section 638.51 claims.
What businesses should take from the change
SB 690 is not a compliance safe harbor. Businesses may still want to review their tracking technologies, consent-management processes, and privacy disclosures with qualified counsel, particularly because other state and federal legal theories may remain relevant. The law changes a route for private claims; it does not establish that a company’s specific data practices comply with every applicable requirement. A tracking or consent-management review can help identify issues, but neither a service nor a software tool guarantees compliance.
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Why older descriptions of the bill can be misleading
A 2025 legislative summary described a broader proposal involving a “commercial business purpose.” That earlier proposal should not be confused with the enacted measure described by current legal analyses: a narrower restriction on private Section 638.51 claims arising from website and application conduct. See the 2025 legislative summary alongside Morgan Lewis’s account of the enacted law.
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