A federal appellate court will consider early next month whether the Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA) makes an “Android ID” – a device identifier used in Google’s smartphones –personally identifiable information (PII). The Eleventh Circuit has scheduled oral argument in the case, Ellis v. Cartoon Network, Inc., for June 3, 2015.
The plaintiff in
The Supreme Court of the United States granted certiorari late last month in a case with important implications for consumer privacy and for the ability of Congress generally to create wholly new protections for consumers. Plaintiffs must always show that they have standing – a legally-protected interest that allegedly has been violated – before a
On April 23, 2015, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that retail tracking company Nomi Technologies has agreed to settle FTC charges that it misled consumers. The FTC alleged that the company, which develops technology to allow retailers to track consumers’ movements through their stores, misled consumers by failing to uphold promises to provide a
This week, the U.S. House of Representatives passed two cybersecurity information sharing bills that gained qualified support from the Obama Administration. Together, the bills (the Protect Cyber Networks Act (PCNA) and the National Cybersecurity Protection Advancement Act (NCPAA)) would authorize companies to share cyber threat information and defensive measures with each other and the
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced today that AT&T Services, Inc., will pay $25 million to resolve an investigation into whether the company violated Sections 201(b) and 222 of the Communications Act relating to consumer privacy at AT&T call centers in Mexico, Colombia, and the Philippines. According to the FCC’s order and consent decree,
The flow of data over the Internet creates privacy concerns in strange situations. For instance, when Pandora, the music streaming service, integrated its subscribers’ profile pages with their Facebook accounts, Pandora apparently made music preferences and listening choices available to the subscribers’ friends. The result was a suit alleging a violation of a Michigan statute
Technology is advancing fast, but would you use an app to figure out if you had cancer? According the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), that’s just what two app developers were recommending, but the FTC said they lacked the evidence to back their claims up. The FTC entered into consent agreements with two companies, MelApp and
As we discussed in the Privacy Class Action Claims on the Rise post from December 17, 2014, the number of privacy class action claims is trending upwards, along with all things privacy-related. Some of the breaches and other big media stories could have been avoided, while others were unavoidable for the businesses at issue. Either
From the allegations of Edward Snowden about official snooping on U.S. citizens (and non-Americans worldwide) to any of the seemingly innumerable data breaches hitting retailers like Home Depot and Target or movie/television studio Sony or pick-your-favorite-example, it’s rare that a day passes without some breaking news about privacy (or its sibling, cybersecurity).
Think of the
Since new requirements under the updated Children’s Online Privacy and Protection Act (COPPA) entered into force in July, 2013, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has moved into an active enforcement phase, while also fielding requests to recognize new parental consent methods and safe harbor programs. Those interested in children’s online activities can draw some important
