Privacy, Commercial Law & Contracts, Consumer Protection

Court Dismisses California AG’s First Suit Against Mobile Application Provider Under Online Privacy Protection Act

by BuckleySandler LLP on 5/21/2013

On May 9, the Superior Court of California dismissed California Attorney General Kamala Harris’ first suit against a company for allegedly failing to comply with the state’s Online Privacy Protection Act. California v. Delta...more

FCC Rules Sellers May Be Vicariously Liable for Third-Party Telemarketers’ Violations of Telephone Consumer Protection Act

by Jim DeGraw, David McIntosh, Doug Meal, Mark Szpak | Ropes & Gray LLP on 5/20/2013

The Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) recently declared that sellers of products and services can be held vicariously liable for actions of third-party telemarketers that violate the Telephone Consumer Protection Act...more

Busy at Work: California Legislature Addressing Data Privacy Concerns with Data Privacy Law

by Lisa Kim, Joshua Marker, Sarah Woo | Reed Smith on 5/15/2013

The California legislature is busily at work, staying at the forefront with the development of data privacy laws. More than 15 bills related to data privacy concerns are currently making their way through the legislature, and...more

FTC Sharpens Focus On Data Brokers

by BuckleySandler LLP on 5/14/2013

On May 7, the FTC released letters it sent to 10 data brokers warning that certain of the brokers’ practices could violate FCRA privacy protections. ...more

FTC Denies Requests to Extend Effective Date for COPPA Rule Revisions

by Ronald London | Davis Wright Tremaine LLP on 5/14/2013

The FTC has voted to retain the July 1, 2013 effective date for the revisions to its Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA Rule), shortly after issuing revised “Frequently Asked Questions” (FAQs) to aid compliance...more

Enter, the APPS Act

by Amy Malone | Mintz Levin - Privacy & Security on 5/14/2013

U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson, a Democrat from Georgia, has introduced a mobile privacy bill that if passed will require mobile application developers to maintain privacy policies, obtain consent from consumers before collecting...more

FTC’s revised COPPA rules go into effect July 1, 2013

by Thompson Coburn LLP on 5/9/2013

On May 6, 2013, the FTC unanimously decided that the revised Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) will go into effect on July 1, 2013, as announced last December. Several industry organizations had asked the...more

Cyber Risk Insurance May Cost More Than You Think

by Thomas Caswell, III | Zelle Hofmann Voelbel & Mason LLP on 5/9/2013

Since 2003, all but four states have enacted laws concerning data breaches and the protection of consumers’ personal information. This regulation of electronic data containing personal information and the protection of such...more

California Federal Court Holds Online Purchase Transactions For Shipped Merchandise Not Covered By Song-Beverly Credit Card Act

by BuckleySandler LLP on 5/8/2013

On April 30, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California held that Section 1747.08 of the Song-Beverly Credit Card Act, which prohibits retailers from requiring personal information as a condition to...more

FTC on COPPA: No Delay

by Mintz Levin - Privacy & Security on 5/7/2013

This afternoon, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) unanimously rejected requests from industry organizations to delay the July 1 date for compliance with the amendments to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA)....more

Finally – Video Privacy Protection Act Amended for the Internet Era

by Scott Atkinson | Carr, McClellan, Ingersoll, Thompson & Horn -... on 5/1/2013

Overview - On January 10, 2013, President Obama signed into law amendments to the 1988 Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA) that facilitate social media sharing of video viewing preferences when users consent to...more

About California’s Right to Know Act of 2013 – What, Me Worry?

by Jake Romero | Mintz Levin - Privacy & Security on 4/30/2013

If you got Google, Facebook and Microsoft into a room and asked them to compile a list of things that they are most afraid of, that list would probably look something like this...more

FTC Updates COPPA FAQs

by BuckleySandler LLP on 4/30/2013

On April 25, the FTC issued updated FAQs on the recently amended Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act Rule. ...more

Spam Smart Tip: Transition Period Balm For The Compliance Sting

by Tim Banks | Dentons on 4/26/2013

Transition periods for new legislation are often critical in taking the sting out of compliance costs. But some transition periods are better than others. In the case of Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL), organizations...more

War of Words Regarding Implementation of Amendments to COPPA – UPDATE

by Mintz Levin - Privacy & Security on 4/25/2013

UPDATE — The Federal Trade Commission has published its promised COPPA FAQs - ..Volley #1 - Trade Associations to FTC: Please Delay! - The long-awaited amendments to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection...more

Burr Alert: Blowing The Cap Off Statutory Damages Under The FCCPA?: An Analysis Of Kahmeyer v. Federal Credit Corporation

by John Chiles, Kristin Peters | Burr & Forman on 4/15/2013

In Kahmeyer v. Federal Credit Corporation, the 13th Judicial Circuit in Hillsborough County, Florida released an opinion that has given new life to the argument that each violation of the Florida Consumer Collection Practices...more

Retailers Should Use Caution In Collecting Zip Codes From Consumers

by Mark Bross | Adler Pollock & Sheehan P.C. on 4/15/2013

In a recent decision, Tyler v. Michaels Stores, the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts ("SJC") has increased the risk of class action lawsuits under M.G.L. c. 93A against retailers who collect consumers' ZIP codes during...more

Shine the Light a Little Brighter – Changes Resulting in Increased Customer Access Proposed to California’s “Shine the Light” Act

by Charley Lozada | Proskauer - Privacy & Data Security on 4/12/2013

California Assembly Member, Bonnie Lowenthal, recently introduced the “Right to Know Act of 2013? (AB 1291), which would require any company that retains a California resident’s personal information to provide a copy of that...more

Yet Another Zip Code Class Action Filed in Massachusetts

by Amy Malone | Mintz Levin - Privacy & Security on 4/9/2013

Earlier this month, we reported on the privacy case against craft giant Michaels Stores in which the plaintiff alleged that Michaels illegally collected zip codes during credit card transactions. The case was ultimately...more

Court Limits Use of Zip Codes in Massachusetts Credit Card Transactions

by Thomas I. Elkind | Foley & Lardner LLP on 4/1/2013

In a recent decision, Tyler v. Michaels Stores, Inc., the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court held that zip codes are “personal identification information” and that a merchant asking for that information during a credit card...more

Massachusetts Supreme Court Rules ZIP Codes Are Definitely “Personal Identification Information”

by Erin Aures | Proskauer - Privacy & Data Security on 4/1/2013

In a recent ruling arising from certain certified questions in Tyler v. Michaels Stores, Inc., Civ. No. 11-10920-WGY (D. Mass. Jan. 6, 2012, the Massachusetts Supreme Court interpreted “personal identification information”...more

Check the White Pages for Personal Information: Massachusetts Decision Highlights the Expansion of Consumer Privacy Litigation

by Abby Sher | Cozen O'Connor on 3/26/2013

Last week, in Tyler v. Michaels Stores, Inc., the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts responded to certified questions presented by the district court and interpreted a Massachusetts statute to reflect the state’s...more

Massachusetts Follows California in Finding Retailers Vulnerable to Suit for Collecting Zip Codes in Credit Card Transactions

by Michael von Ansbach-Young | BakerHostetler on 3/26/2013

Earlier this month, the Massachusetts Supreme Court issued an opinion holding that zip codes “may well qualify” as personally identifiable information under the Massachusetts law controlling the treatment of PII in credit...more

Massachusetts High Court Holds State Credit Card Law Intended To Protect Against Invasion Of Privacy, ZIP Codes Protected

by BuckleySandler LLP on 3/21/2013

On March 11, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court held that a credit card holder may bring an action for violation of a state law prohibiting businesses from requiring personal identification information as part of a...more

Zip Code Requests Off-Limits in Massachusetts Credit Card Transactions

by Martin Bishop, Thomas I. Elkind, Michael Lueder | Foley & Lardner LLP on 3/21/2013