In an effort to develop better privacy policies and better protect personal data for residents of Washington, in 2015 Governor Jay Inslee announced the creation of the chief privacy officer (CPO) position and hired Alex Alben for the position. Citing the many new technologies endangering consumer privacy, the governor called upon Alben to examine privacy policies across the state’s agencies, adding that Washington strives to be a leader in consumer protection.

Washington is the third state to create the fairly novel CPO position. Different from the chief information security officer (CISO) position, which focuses on operational and infrastructure security, the CPO addresses and informs the security team of legal and regulatory obligations in handling data. The CPO also creates and disseminates privacy policies.

In the short time that Alben has held the position, he has published the first state privacy guide for consumers and launched a new Washington government privacy website. He has also examined new technologies such as drones, police body cameras, and telematics.

Alben brings a wealth of experience to the post, including private sector and policy advocacy, particularly in entertainment and software law. Formerly general counsel of Starwave Corporation and senior management at RealNetworks, Inc., Alben has also lectured on intellectual property and technology issues at Stanford Law School, UC Berkeley, and the University of Washington School of Law.