Mobile App Series: Privacy by Design
In August, Viacom and a number of other app developers and ad-tech companies reached a settlement with parents who had alleged that the companies were illegally selling children’s personal information for behavioral...more
Does My Video Game Violate Consumers’ Privacy Rights? The California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) is the first broad-based state statute aimed at enhancing personal privacy rights for consumers. Following the example set by...more
Many of the most popular mobile apps collect personally identifiable information. Although most app developers are not required to display a privacy policy under federal law, they are contractually required to do so pursuant...more
The Federal Trade Commission on October 23, 2017, provided guidance on how it will enforce the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) with respect to audio recordings of children. This comes as part of a wave of...more
Consumers are increasingly turning to health apps for a variety of medical and wellness-related purposes. This has in turn caused greater amounts of data—including highly sensitive information—to flow through these apps....more
Last week, Apple announced the new Apple Watch Series 3 which will feature an enhanced heart rate app. The app will notify you when it detects an elevated heart rate even when you are not working out. The sensor will also be...more
In June 2016, India-based online advertising behemoth InMobi Ltd. agreed to pay a $ 950,000 fine to resolve Federal Trade Commission (FTC) allegations that its data collection practices violated the Children’s Online Privacy...more
Ad Company's Geotargeting Locates a $1M Penalty - InMobi, a Singapore-based mobile advertising company, will pay almost $1 million in civil penalties and implement a comprehensive privacy program to settle charges that...more
Similar to website browsers, many mobile applications collect a variety of information from the user, including, the user’s identity, usage history, past log-ins, and location. This enables the application to provide various...more
The COPPA Rule requires website and online service operators to give notice to parents and obtain verifiable parental consent before collecting children’s “personal information” online. 16 CFR §§ 312.4, 312.5. The...more
On December 17, 2015, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced its first Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) enforcement actions challenging the use of persistent identifiers to engage in targeted advertising...more
FTC Reviews Kids’ Apps for Privacy Progress - Three years after conducting a survey on apps directed to children, the Federal Trade Commission’s Office of Technology Research and Investigation decided to check back with...more
For corporations, the mobile app is today’s website. Back in the late 1990s, no self-respecting company, no matter how stodgy and old-fashioned, wanted to be without a website....more
A new Federal Trade Commission report urges mobile app platforms and developers to better inform consumers about their privacy practices. Mobile app platforms and developers should review their privacy policies to ensure...more
Building on the privacy concepts articulated in their December 2012 report, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released a staff report on February 1, which recommends a framework for mobile privacy. Like the report issued...more
A weekly wrap up of interesting news about virtual worlds, virtual goods and other social media. In This Issue: - Path Inc. to Settle Charges Over Collecting Kids' Data - Feds Urge App Makers, Mobile Operating...more
The Federal Trade Commission has emphasized in the past that general privacy protections in the website space apply equally to mobile services, but a new FTC Staff Report released on Friday hones in on some privacy...more
On February 1, 2012, “smart journal” application provider, Path, Inc. (“Path”) agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) charges that it deceived consumers and improperly collected personal information in violation of...more
On February 1, 2013, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a settlement with Path, Inc., a social networking mobile application developer. Path offers and distributes "smart journal" mobile apps, which permit users to...more
In this issue: - FTC Releases Final Amendments to Children's Online Privacy Protection Rule - Mobile Apps Face Heightened Privacy Enforcement - Policies and Practices Scrutinized - Global and European...more