
Serious Privacy
For those who are interested in the hottest field in a technology world. Whether you are a professional who wants to learn more about privacy, data protection, or cyber law or someone who just finds this fascinating, we have topics for you from data management to cybersecurity to social justice and data ethics and AI. In-depth information on serious privacy topics. This podcast, hosted by Dr. K Royal, Paul Breitbarth and Ralph O'Brien, features open, unscripted discussions with global privacy professionals (those kitchen table or back porch conversations) where you hear the opinions and thoughts of those who are on the front lines working on the newest issues in handling personal data. Real information on your schedule - because the world needs serious privacy.Follow us on BlueSky (@seriousprivacy.eu) or LinkedIn
Latest episodes

Feb 26, 2025 • 41min
Catch (up) of the Week: on notices, children and doping
Send us a textOn this week of Serious Privacy, Paul Breitbarth, Ralph O’Brien of Reinbo Consulting, and Dr. K Royal, catch up on data protection and privacy developments from around the globe. Up for discussion this week:The repeal of the proposal for an ePrivacy Regulation and AI Liability Directive (link)The EDPB guidelines on age assurance and recommendations to the World Anti Doping Agency (link)The ICO Direct Marketing Advice generator (link)Utah Age Verification (link)Danish Petitition to buy California (link)Powered by TrustArc Powered by TrustArcIf you have comments or questions, find us on LinkedIn and Instagram @seriousprivacy, and on BlueSky under @seriousprivacy.eu, @europaulb.seriousprivacy.eu, @heartofprivacy.bsky.app and @igrobrien.seriousprivacy.eu, and email podcast@seriousprivacy.eu. Rate and Review us! From Season 6, our episodes are edited by Fey O'Brien. Our intro and exit music is Channel Intro 24 by Sascha Ende, licensed under CC BY 4.0. with the voiceover by Tim Foley.

Feb 19, 2025 • 41min
We require order! Order, we say (a week in privacy)
Send us a textOn this week of Serious Privacy, Paul Breitbarth of Catawiki, Ralph O’Brien of Reinbo Consulting, and Dr. K Royal launch the first week in privacy for 2025. Topics include the EDPS election, AI, and US state laws and enforcement - among others! Powered by TrustArc Powered by TrustArcIf you have comments or questions, find us on LinkedIn and Instagram @seriousprivacy, and on BlueSky under @seriousprivacy.eu, @europaulb.seriousprivacy.eu, @heartofprivacy.bsky.app and @igrobrien.seriousprivacy.eu, and email podcast@seriousprivacy.eu. Rate and Review us! From Season 6, our episodes are edited by Fey O'Brien. Our intro and exit music is Channel Intro 24 by Sascha Ende, licensed under CC BY 4.0. with the voiceover by Tim Foley.

Feb 12, 2025 • 36min
Constitutionally Unconstitutional or is it? (Prof. Wayne Unger)
Send us a textOn this week of Serious Privacy, Paul Breitbarth of Catawiki, Ralph O’Brien of Reinbo Consulting, and Dr. K Royal interview with Wayne Unger, a #constitutional scholar and Assistant Professor of Law, Quinnipiac University. They delve into recent #U.S. #political events under the new administration. The discussion covers the legality of #executiveorders, implications for #privacylaws, #birthright #citizenship, #TikTok, and concerns about retaliation for political speech. Insights are shared on the broader impact of these issues both domestically and internationally.00:00 Breaking News: Italian Regulator Blocks DeepSeek02:41 Introduction to This Week's Guest: Wayne Unger02:49 Constitutional Challenges in the U.S.05:04 TikTok Ban: Legal and Political Implications14:51 Trump's Executive Orders and Constitutional Questions18:16 Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board Controversy23:30 Global Reactions and Personal Reflections32:51 Concluding Thoughts and Farewell If you have comments or questions, find us on LinkedIn and Instagram @seriousprivacy, and on BlueSky under @seriousprivacy.eu, @europaulb.seriousprivacy.eu, @heartofprivacy.bsky.app and @igrobrien.seriousprivacy.eu, and email podcast@seriousprivacy.eu. Rate and Review us! From Season 6, our episodes are edited by Fey O'Brien. Our intro and exit music is Channel Intro 24 by Sascha Ende, licensed under CC BY 4.0. with the voiceover by Tim Foley.

Feb 6, 2025 • 34min
The first week in privacy - hot news now
Send us a textOn this week of Serious Privacy, Paul Breitbarth of Catawiki, Ralph O’Brien of Reinbo Consulting, and Dr. K Royal launch the first week in privacy for 2025. Topics include State laws in the US entering into effect (link to White & Case article, but bonus for 10 areas for US-based privacy programs to focus in 2025 from Hintze Law) to a TikTok ban that was there and then it wasn't. European Data Protection Board opinions. Court of Justice of the EU. Regulatory issues in Kenya. so much more. and did we even talk about Deepseek? Remember to like and subscribe!Powered by TrustArc Powered by TrustArcIf you have comments or questions, find us on LinkedIn and Instagram @seriousprivacy, and on BlueSky under @seriousprivacy.eu, @europaulb.seriousprivacy.eu, @heartofprivacy.bsky.app and @igrobrien.seriousprivacy.eu, and email podcast@seriousprivacy.eu. Rate and Review us! From Season 6, our episodes are edited by Fey O'Brien. Our intro and exit music is Channel Intro 24 by Sascha Ende, licensed under CC BY 4.0. with the voiceover by Tim Foley.

Jan 28, 2025 • 39min
Villains, Visions, and Val - Welcome 2025 (with Val Ilchenko)
Send us a textOn this week of Serious Privacy, Paul Breitbarth, Ralph O’Brien, and Dr. K Royal ring in the new year with Val Ilchenko, General Counsel and Chief Privacy Officer of TrustArc. No topic was off limits! We discussed the ghosts of Privacy past, now, and future. Tune in to hear all about it as we kick off the new year on #GlobalDataPrivacyday / #GlobalDataProtectionDay 2025!Please follow and set to auto-downloads in your favorite podcast app - sharing is caring! Powered by TrustArc Powered by TrustArcIf you have comments or questions, find us on LinkedIn and Instagram @seriousprivacy, and on BlueSky under @seriousprivacy.eu, @europaulb.seriousprivacy.eu, @heartofprivacy.bsky.app and @igrobrien.seriousprivacy.eu, and email podcast@seriousprivacy.eu. Rate and Review us! From Season 6, our episodes are edited by Fey O'Brien. Our intro and exit music is Channel Intro 24 by Sascha Ende, licensed under CC BY 4.0. with the voiceover by Tim Foley.

Dec 31, 2024 • 43min
From Renovations to Resolutions: 2024 Recap (see ya' in 2025)
Send us a textIn this final episode of the year, hosts Paul Breitbarth, Dr. K Royal, and Ralph O’Brien discuss the highlights of the fifth season of the Serious Privacy podcast, reflecting on the pivotal moments in privacy throughout 2024. They share insights into their favorite episodes, the progression and challenges within global privacy laws, and personal milestones. The hosts also predict what to expect in the privacy landscape in 2025, including advancements in legislation and regulations. As they sign off for the year, they extend their best wishes for the new year and invite listeners to provide feedback and suggestions for future episodes, marking the transition to a new season with an elevated reflectiveness and anticipation. We thank all of our fans and guests and especially our sponsor TrustArc for their support and enthusiasm. Powered by TrustArc Powered by TrustArcIf you have comments or questions, find us on LinkedIn and Instagram @seriousprivacy, and on BlueSky under @seriousprivacy.eu, @europaulb.seriousprivacy.eu, @heartofprivacy.bsky.app and @igrobrien.seriousprivacy.eu, and email podcast@seriousprivacy.eu. Rate and Review us! From Season 6, our episodes are edited by Fey O'Brien. Our intro and exit music is Channel Intro 24 by Sascha Ende, licensed under CC BY 4.0. with the voiceover by Tim Foley.

Dec 24, 2024 • 37min
A Week in Privacy
Send us a textA final week in privacy episode of Serious Privacy in 2024, where Paul Breitbarth and Dr. K Royal once again give the lead to Big Tech. And Netflix. From all of us in the podcast team, we wish you and your loved ones happy holidays. Stay tuned for the season 5 finale!Powered by TrustArc Powered by TrustArcIf you have comments or questions, find us on LinkedIn and Instagram @seriousprivacy, and on BlueSky under @seriousprivacy.eu, @europaulb.seriousprivacy.eu, @heartofprivacy.bsky.app and @igrobrien.seriousprivacy.eu, and email podcast@seriousprivacy.eu. Rate and Review us! From Season 6, our episodes are edited by Fey O'Brien. Our intro and exit music is Channel Intro 24 by Sascha Ende, licensed under CC BY 4.0. with the voiceover by Tim Foley.

Dec 19, 2024 • 45min
Contract Management with Cathleen Doyel
Send us a textIn this week's episode of Serious Privacy, Paul Breitbarth, Dr. K Royal and Ralph O'Brien speak with Cathleen Doyel of our sponsor TrustArc about all things contract management. Cathleen has been a commercial contract lawyer for many years, in recent times with a strong focus on data protection clauses. For most of us, contracts are never fun, so this is your opportunity to get some best practices to have a better 2025, including through the use of trust centers for all the contract supporting documentation. In addition, in this episode our hosts talk about the recent TikTok developments, both in the United States and in Romania. Powered by TrustArc Powered by TrustArcIf you have comments or questions, find us on LinkedIn and Instagram @seriousprivacy, and on BlueSky under @seriousprivacy.eu, @europaulb.seriousprivacy.eu, @heartofprivacy.bsky.app and @igrobrien.seriousprivacy.eu, and email podcast@seriousprivacy.eu. Rate and Review us! From Season 6, our episodes are edited by Fey O'Brien. Our intro and exit music is Channel Intro 24 by Sascha Ende, licensed under CC BY 4.0. with the voiceover by Tim Foley.

Dec 16, 2024 • 33min
A long-awaited episode and law from Down Under (with John Keeves)
Send us a textOn this week of Serious Privacy, Paul Breitbarth of Catawiki and Dr. K Royal connect with John Keeves, partner at Johnson Winter Slatterly in Australia to discuss all things Australia. In particular we discussed the Cyber Security Act of 2024 and other recent changes and enforcement activities. Tune in for some #livinglearninglaughing.Powered by TrustArc Powered by TrustArcIf you have comments or questions, find us on LinkedIn and Instagram @seriousprivacy, and on BlueSky under @seriousprivacy.eu, @europaulb.seriousprivacy.eu, @heartofprivacy.bsky.app and @igrobrien.seriousprivacy.eu, and email podcast@seriousprivacy.eu. Rate and Review us! From Season 6, our episodes are edited by Fey O'Brien. Our intro and exit music is Channel Intro 24 by Sascha Ende, licensed under CC BY 4.0. with the voiceover by Tim Foley.

Dec 6, 2024 • 36min
A slow week in privacy - so AI time!
Send us a textOn this week of Serious Privacy, Paul Breitbarth of Catawiki and Dr. K Royal cover a relatively slow week in privacy, including a settlement with Oracle out of California, some new WorldCoin investigations, KOSA, and a position paper from BEUC so we also throw in some frank discussion of AI tools and how they can help in our personal and professional lives.Tune in for some #livinglearninglaughing. Powered by TrustArc Powered by TrustArcIf you have comments or questions, find us on LinkedIn and Instagram @seriousprivacy, and on BlueSky under @seriousprivacy.eu, @europaulb.seriousprivacy.eu, @heartofprivacy.bsky.app and @igrobrien.seriousprivacy.eu, and email podcast@seriousprivacy.eu. Rate and Review us! From Season 6, our episodes are edited by Fey O'Brien. Our intro and exit music is Channel Intro 24 by Sascha Ende, licensed under CC BY 4.0. with the voiceover by Tim Foley.