Congress Continues to Examine Data Brokers’ Practices
The chairmen of the Congressional Bipartisan Privacy Caucus just released the responses they received from nine major data brokers whom they queried in July about how each broker collects, assembles and sells consumer information to third parties. In their responses, the nine companies — Acxiom, Epsilon, Equifax, Experian, Harte-Hanks, Intelius, Fair Isaac, Merkle and Meredith…
Read MoreJudge’s Ruling on Antitrust Complaint Has Implications Far Beyond the .xxx Domain
A recent decision by a federal judge in California has brought ICANN’s broad authority over the domain name system once again into question. Manwin Licensing International – perhaps the most lucrative provider of online adult-oriented content – brought an antitrust action against ICANN arising from the establishment of the .xxx top-level domain and the award…
Read MoreWhy California AG’s Online Privacy Crackdown Makes a Big Difference
Companies that run websites must comply with laws and rules requiring the maintenance of personal privacy. While federal requirements such as those applicable to financial privacy and children’s privacy gain significant attention, website and app developers also should pay careful attention to state privacy requirements. State regulators are monitoring websites and apps for compliance with…
Read MorePOM Loses a Round in Its Advertising Dispute With FTC, But Battle Continues
POM Wonderful LLC recently received a setback in its longstanding dispute with the Federal Trade Commission. On Sept. 30, 2012, U.S. District Judge Richard Roberts in the District of Columbia dismissed the juice maker’s declaratory judgment action against the FTC. The judge’s ruling, though, does not put an end to the POM-FTC battle, which is…
Read More‘Results Will Vary,’ But FTC’s Cases Against Weight-Loss Companies Remain the Same
The Federal Trade Commission recently announced a settlement with Jason Pharmaceuticals regarding its use of consumer testimonials and health benefits claims. Any company that relies on testimonials in its advertising, even a company that like Jason Pharmaceuticals, sells products that often have beneficial health results, must become aware of this settlement. Jason Pharmaceuticals sells Medifast…
Read More‘Get-Rich-Quick’ Systems Penalized by FTC to Tune of $478 Million
As part of the Federal Trade Commission’s ongoing efforts to shut down scams that target financially vulnerable consumers, a U.S. district judge has issued a $478 million judgment at the request of the FTC against the marketers of three get-rich-quick systems that the agency says are used for deceiving consumers. The order is the largest…
Read MoreCybersecurity a Desirable Goal, but Does Obama Proposal Go Too Far?
In the past couple of years, a wide variety of computer viruses and other malware have allegedly been used by one nation against another. This secretive form of warfare even briefly plastered names like Stuxnet, Duqu, Flame, and Gauss across the front pages. In partial response to the threat posed to U.S. interests by hostile…
Read MoreWith $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 MoreEmployers: 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‘Your Baby Can Read,’ Targeted for Dubious Ads, Closes Its Doors
After nearly a decade of persuading hundreds of thousands of parents that their babies were geniuses, the popular company, Your Baby Can Read, is shutting its doors. Its demise is the result of an FTC investigation prompted by the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood advocacy group, which challenged claims by the company that newborns have…
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