Background -
The issue of fraudulent crypto-related mobile apps has received much attention of late. Back in July 2022, the FBI issued a notice, warning financial institutions and investors about instances where criminals...more
9/16/2022
/ Apple ,
Communications Decency Act ,
Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Cryptocurrency ,
FBI ,
Financial Institutions ,
Fraud ,
Immunity ,
Limitation of Liability Clause ,
Mobile Apps ,
Phishing Scams
Yesterday, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) filed a settled securities fraud action against App Annie Inc., one of the largest sellers of market data on how apps on mobile devices are performing, and its...more
Happy Silver Anniversary to Section 230 of Communications Decency Act (“CDA” or “Section 230”), which was signed into law by President Bill Clinton in February 1996. At that time, Congress enacted CDA Section 230 in response...more
3/18/2021
/ Communications Decency Act ,
Google ,
Illegal Gambling ,
Immunity ,
Loot Boxes ,
Mobile Apps ,
Section 230 ,
Social Media ,
State Law Claims ,
User-Generated Content ,
Video Games ,
Virtual Currency
This past week, the operator of the popular Weather Channel (“TWC”) mobile phone app entered into a Stipulation of Settlement with the Los Angeles City Attorney, Mike Feuer (“City Attorney”), closing the books on one of the...more
8/18/2020
/ Advertising ,
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
Consumer Information ,
Consumer Privacy Rights ,
Data Collection ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
Geolocation ,
Location Data ,
Location Privacy ,
Mobile Apps ,
Privacy Policy ,
Unfair Competition
Yesterday January 3, 2019, Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer filed an unfair competition lawsuit on behalf of the People of the State of California against the operator of the popular Weather Channel app (“TWC app”) for...more
This post discusses some of the contractual requirements imposed by Apple and Google regarding the collection and sharing of locational information. What consents, if any, do Apple and Google require that app publishers...more
12/19/2018
/ California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
Consumer Information ,
Data Collection ,
Data Protection ,
Data-Sharing ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Geolocation ,
Location Data ,
Location Privacy ,
Mobile Apps ,
Mobile Devices ,
Privacy Concerns ,
Third-Party Service Provider
Courts are increasingly taking a magnifying glass to electronic contracting processes, particularly how the presentation of the terms of service and call to action are displayed. As such, companies might take a second look at...more
6/19/2018
/ Arbitration ,
Clickwrap Agreements ,
Consumer Contracts ,
Contract Terms ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
Mobile Apps ,
Motion to Compel ,
Privacy Policy ,
Terms and Conditions ,
Terms of Service ,
Uber
There has been a lot of attention in the media lately with respect to the Facebook/Cambridge Analytica issue and its fall-out (including today’s coverage of the announcement that Facebook suspended almost 200 apps pending a...more
5/17/2018
/ Apple ,
Cambridge Analytica ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Collection ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Facebook ,
Mobile Apps ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Privacy Concerns
In a decision that clarified aspects of the video privacy landscape, the Ninth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of an action alleging a violation of the Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA) based on an assertion that ESPN’s...more
12/7/2017
/ Data Collection ,
ESPN ,
GPS ,
Internet Streaming ,
Mobile Apps ,
Mobile Devices ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Roku ,
Spokeo ,
Unique Device Identifiers ,
VPPA
This week’s Apple X announcement was not more than a few hours old, and the questions began to come in. Apple’s introduction of Face ID facial recognition on its new phone – although already available in some form on several...more
9/15/2017
/ Apple ,
Biometric Information ,
COPPA ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Use Policies ,
Facial Recognition Technology ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
iPhone ,
Mobile Apps ,
Mobile Privacy ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Spoofing
In recent years, courts have issued varying rulings as to whether online or mobile users adequately consented to user agreements or terms of service when completing an online purchase or registering for a service. In each...more
9/1/2017
/ Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action ,
Clickwrap Agreements ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Mobile Apps ,
Mobile Devices ,
Motion to Compel ,
Online Contracts ,
Privacy Policy ,
Registration ,
Terms of Service ,
Uber
This past summer, we wrote about two instances in which courts refused to enforce website terms presented in browsewrap agreements. As we noted, clickthrough agreements are generally more likely to be found to be enforced. ...more
11/22/2016
/ AirBnB ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Browsewrap Agreement ,
Clickwrap Agreements ,
Consumer Contracts ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Discrimination ,
Fair Housing Act (FHA) ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
Mobile Apps ,
Mobile Devices ,
Motion to Compel ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Sharing Economy ,
Technology ,
Terms of Service ,
Unenforceable Contract Terms ,
Vacation Rentals ,
Website Design ,
Websites ,
Young Lawyers
In Yershov v. Gannett Satellite Information Network, Inc., a user of the free USA Today app alleged that each time he viewed a video clip, the app transmitted his mobile Android ID, GPS coordinates and identification of the...more
9/8/2016
/ Article III ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Data Collection ,
Injury-in-Fact ,
Mobile Apps ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Spokeo v Robins ,
Standing ,
Subject Matter Jurisdiction ,
Third-Party ,
VPPA
This past week, the First Circuit issued a notable opinion concerning the contours of liability under the Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA) – a decision that stirs up further uncertainty as to where to draw the line...more
The Eleventh Circuit issued a notable ruling this week limiting a mobile app’s liability under the Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA), 18 U.S.C. § 2710, a law enacted in 1988 to preserve “consumer” personal privacy with...more
10/15/2015
/ Advertising ,
Android ,
App Developers ,
Cartoon Network ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Digital Downloads ,
Internet Streaming ,
Mobile Apps ,
Nonsubscribers ,
Online Videos ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Third-Party ,
VPPA ,
Web Tracking
The big fight may be over, but the implications of Mayweather vs. Pacquiao with respect to real-time, one-to-many streaming of video through apps like Meerkat and Periscope are still rippling through the media industry. In...more
5/5/2015
/ Copyright ,
DMCA ,
Internet Streaming ,
Live Streaming ,
Mobile Apps ,
Popular ,
Privacy Concerns ,
Smartphones ,
Social Media ,
Social Networks ,
Sports ,
Takedown Notices
Operators of public-facing websites are typically concerned about the unauthorized, technology-based extraction of large volumes of information from their sites, often by competitors or others in related businesses. The...more