Category: Privacy Law
With $22.5 Million Google Settlement, FTC Sends a Clear Message
On August 9, 2012, the Federal Trade Commission announced that Google has agreed to pay a $22.5 million penalty to settle the FTC’s charges that it violated a consent order regarding consumer privacy. This is the largest civil penalty that the FTC has ever exacted for a violation of one of the agency’s orders, and… Read More
Employers: Don’t Ask Job Applicants for Their Passwords (at Least in Illinois)
On August 1, 2012, Illinois Governor Pat Quinn signed a bill into law (HB 3782) that prohibits employers from requesting or requiring employees or prospective employees to provide their Facebook or other social networking website passwords. With the new law, effective on January 1, 2013, Illinois becomes the second state (Maryland was the first) to… Read More
FTC Proposes New Rules on Children’s Online Privacy Issues
On August 1, 2012, the Federal Trade Commission announced that is issuing a Supplemental Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to modify certain of its rules under the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). Industry has been waiting on FTC action regarding COPPA, as the agency previously undertook a COPPA rulemaking in September 2011 and proposed modifying… Read More
Ifrah Law Partner Michelle Cohen: Don’t Consider Yourself Immune to Data Breaches
Michelle Cohen recently joined Ifrah Law as a partner. Here is an edited transcript of a recent interview with Ms. Cohen. Question: What are some of your legal experiences and strengths that you’d like to highlight? Answer: I have many years of experience representing clients engaged in various industry sectors before state attorney generals, the… Read More
Obama’s Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights: Less Than Meets the Eye?
A good bit of fanfare surrounded the Obama Administration’s release of its Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights in late February. The publication reflects the Administration’s efforts to improve online consumer privacy protections while not stifling the growth of the Internet industries. The document is entitled, “Consumer Data Privacy in a Networked World: A Framework for… Read More
How Zappos Defused a Potential Online Privacy Crisis
When hackers breached the computer systems of online retailer Zappos.com in January, they gained access to the personal information of up to 24 million customers. The information included customer names, billing and shipping addresses, email addresses, and phone numbers. In a predictable response, customers immediately filed federal class action lawsuits against Zappos, and the attorneys… Read More
App Industry Begins to Regulate Itself on Data Privacy – With Nudge From Government
The data free-for-all that’s been enjoyed by the app industry is over … more or less. No longer should the industry expect to collect and use customer data – so accessible and abundant in smartphones and tablets – without notice to its customers. Since the Path fiasco (and the revelation of other major data collection… Read More
EPIC Unlikely to Prevail in Challenge to FTC Stance on Google Privacy
A federal judge in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia agreed earlier this month to fast-track a lawsuit by a privacy group against the Federal Trade Commission, arguing that the FTC has failed to enforce the terms of a settlement agreement it reached with Google last year after the FTC accused Google… Read More
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