Neural & Neurotechnology Data

Detects references to neural / neurotechnology data: brain-computer interface signals, EEG/EMG recordings, evoked potentials, neural decoding output and neurofeedback data. Colorado HB24-1058 and California SB 1223 both classify neural data as sensitive personal information. Topic-grade vocabulary detector, not a fixed-format detector.

Type: regex
Engine: universal
Confidence: low
Confidence justification: Low: vocabulary-grade detector. Enforce tiers now require a populated subject identifier; 85 also needs a recording field and linkage evidence, so papers and product copy stay at 65.
Jurisdictions: global, us
Regulations: CCPA/CPRA, GDPR
Frameworks: ISO 27001, NIST CSF, SOC 2
Data categories: pii, biometric, health
Scope: broad
Risk rating: 7
Platform compatibility: Purview: Compatible, GCP DLP: Compatible, Macie: Compatible, Zscaler: Compatible, Palo Alto: Degraded, Netskope: Unsupported

Pattern

(?i)\b(?:EEG|electroencephalogram|electroencephalography|BCIs?|brain[\s-]+computer\s+interfaces?|neural\s+data|neural\s+signals?|neural\s+recordings?|electrode\s+montage|evoked\s+potentials?|neurofeedback|brain\s+activity\s+data|neural\s+interfaces?|EMG|electromyography|electromyograph|P300|fMRI\s+BOLD|BOLD\s+signal|neural\s+decoding|neural\s+spike\s+trains?|neurotechnolog(?:y|ies)|cortical\s+activity|neural\s+oscillations?|local\s+field\s+potentials?)\b

Corroborative evidence keywords

neurodata, neural recording, brain activity, electrode, subject, patient, consent, neurotechnology

Proximity: 300 characters

Should match

EEG recording export Patient name: Morgan Ellisdale Subject ID: N-204 Recording date: 12/08/2026 Channels: 32 (10-20 montage) Sampling rate: 256 Hz Epileptiform discharges noted after artifact rejection; linked diagnosis on file. — Subject-linked EEG export with populated recording fields and clinical linkage evidence (85)
BCI calibration session Participant ID: P-0917 Notes: participant completed the neural signal calibration without discomfort. — Subject-linked BCI session note with an identifier only (75)
The BCI captured neural signal data during the calibration trial. — BCI and neural signal terms present
P300 evoked potential amplitudes were logged per participant. — Evoked potential / P300 neurotechnology terms
fMRI BOLD time series stored alongside the neural decoding output. — fMRI BOLD and neural decoding terms

Should not match

The quarterly sales report shows revenue grew across all regions. — Unrelated business prose, no neural terms
Please update the egg supplier contract before the audit. — Near-miss prose ("egg" is not EEG), no neural vocabulary
The marketing team reviewed the new brand guidelines yesterday. — Unrelated prose with no neurotechnology terms
Published study: scalp sensor subject N-204, channel Fp1 sampled at 256 Hz. — Adjacent public-research language is not an authored neural-data primary
Sample template: scalp sensor subject N-204, channel Fp1 sampled at 256 Hz. — Adjacent template language is not a neural-data record
Patient ECG recording channel II sampled at 256 Hz. — Sibling cardiac signal record does not satisfy the neural-data primary
Policy guidance: this procedure explains how neural data and EEG recordings are collected, stored and shared, who may access them and how long they are kept. Staff should read the privacy section before completing any form. It contains no details about any individual. — Policy/guidance text naming the topic without any populated record (65 discovery at most)
EEG session log Subject ID: ____________________ Recording date: ____________________ Channels: ____________________ Sampling rate: ____________________ Signature: ____________ Date: __/__/____ — Blank form with unpopulated labelled fields (placeholder guard keeps it below 75)
News: two states now treat neural data from consumer EEG headsets as sensitive information, and researchers welcomed the brain-computer interface rules. — News/training prose about the topic without a populated record (65 discovery at most)

Known false positives

Acronyms EEG/EMG/BCI/P300/BOLD can appear in unrelated medical-device engineering, signal-processing, or gaming literature without referring to an identifiable person's data. Mitigation: Require corroborative keywords (subject, patient, recording, consent, neurotechnology) within the proximity window and treat single bare-acronym hits as low confidence.