Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier sued Snap, Inc., the operator of the social media platform Snapchat, last week for violations of Florida’s HB 3 (§§ 501.1736–.1738, Fla. Stat. (2024)) and the Florida Deceptive and...more
In Maynard v. Snapchat Inc., No. S21G0555, 2022 Ga. LEXIS 68, the Supreme Court of Georgia reversed and remanded an appellate court decision that dismissed the popular mobile app Snapchat from suit. Plaintiffs Wentworth and...more
On March 15, 2022, the Georgia Supreme Court revived a negligent design claim that had been brought against Snapchat, Inc. (n/k/a Snap, Inc.) involving Snap’s “Speed Filter.” As one of the few decisions across the country...more
A recent ruling by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in Lemmon v. Snap provides a reminder that while Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act provides broad immunity to the owners and operators of websites and mobile...more
Chat data is a large component of business operations today, especially with the increase in the remote workforce. There are chat apps, videoconferencing and collaboration-based platforms that incorporate chat functions, and...more
On March 8, 2019, the U.S. Department of Justice announced an important change to its Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) Corporate Enforcement Policy concerning one of the conditions — “appropriate retention of business...more
Snapchat and other photo-sharing apps have redefined how users—and employees share information. Due to the ephemeral nature of Snapchat photos and videos, employers may face hurdles in identifying and investigating workplace...more
Markets are joining the American mid-Atlantic and East Coast in bracing for Hurricane Florence and the estimated $27 billion in damages it could bring with it....more
The importance of mobile device data in legal discovery, investigations, and other proceedings is ubiquitous and virtually indisputable. Mobile devices such as cellphones, smartphones, e-readers, and tablets pose a...more
A 2017 survey of business professionals worldwide found that the average business professional uses 9.4 software apps for work purposes. Nearly half of the respondents said they use apps that are not sanctioned by their...more
What do applications like Snapchat, Telegram, Wickr, Cover Me, Speak On, and Whisper have in common? They are all self-destructing message (“SDM”) applications. What exactly does this mean, you ask? Self-destructing messaging...more
More on the Saudi crackdown initiated by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman over the weekend, including the government’s move to confiscate and freeze more than $800 billion in assets from the detailed princes and other...more
Welcome to the newest edition of Socially Aware, our Burton Awardwinning guide to the law and business of social media. In this edition, we explore the threat to U.S. jobs posed by rapid advances in emerging technologies;...more
Last week, Snap Inc. (“Snap” or the “Company”) – the parent company of the wildly popular app Snapchat (“Snapchat” or the “App”) – became a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange in the biggest tech IPO since...more
A federal district court judge refused to grant summary judgment to the copyright owners of the Star Trek franchise in the infringement suit they brought against the team behind a fan-made, crowdfunded prequel to the original...more
Facebook at Work, the on-the-job version of the web’s most popular social media platform, will launch in London on October 10th. Add iHeartRadio to the list of Internet radio platforms that will be offering an on demand...more
‘Snapchat is about sharing moments and having fun’ reads the tagline of the mega-app that has the fastest-growing social network in the world. But despite its phenomenal popularity, what potential impact might Snapchat have...more
Instagram now allows users to zoom in on photos in their feeds and at least 11 brands are already capitalizing on the new feature. Pinterest acquired Instapaper, a tool that allows you to cache webpages for reading at a...more
Facebook introduced technology that disables ad blockers used by people who visit the platform via desktop computers, but Adblock Plus has already foiled the platform’s efforts, at least for now....more
Facebook Messenger joins the elite “one billion monthly users” club just four years after its release as a standalone app....more
We have become inured to the sight of people staring at their phones rather than engaging with one another or enjoying their real-life surroundings. But, over the past two weeks, enslavement to mobile devices rose to new...more
The UK wants to use the blockchain to track the spending of welfare recipients. Some believe that a recent Ninth Circuit holding could turn sharing passwords into a federal crime under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act....more
The Internet is abuzz over the Facebook algorithm change. Here are the implications for marketers and publishers and for regular users. U.S. Customs wants to start collecting the social media accounts for foreign...more
A recently filed Georgia lawsuit seeks to hold Snapchat liable for a high speed motor vehicle accident that allegedly occurred as a result of the at-fault motorist’s use of the social media application. Snapchat users...more
A virtual reality refresher course; Google and privacy concerns; Snapchat visits the dugout; WeChat has some homework for Chinese student; and more…...more