No Password Required: An FBI Special Agent's Journey from Submarines to Anti-Corruption to Cybersecurity
I recently had the chance to visit with Jonathan Armstrong on a recent data breach case that occurred in the health service provider NHS Lanarkshire (Scotland) during the COVID-19 pandemic. This breach serves as a stark...more
2023 continues to be a busy year for European data protection authorities. Following its release of the Irish Data Protection Commission’s (DPC’s) binding decisions in cases against Facebook and Instagram, the European Data...more
While presenting this week at the DRI Cybersecurity and Data Privacy Virtual Seminar, I outlined many of the issues currently impacting data security around the world. Here are some key points:.....more
The passage of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) made it clear that the European Union (EU) is extremely serious about consumer privacy and that protecting EU citizens’ personal information is a top priority. The...more
On September 2, 2021, EU regulators fined Facebook-owned chat service, WhatsApp, £225 million (around $266 million) for failing to fully disclose its user data collection and sharing practices. This is the second largest fine...more
The Irish supervisory authority (Irish DPC) published its final decision to impose a fine of EUR 225 million on WhatsApp Ireland Ltd (WhatsApp)(on 2 September 2021). This decision follows a cross-border investigation into...more
CYBERSECURITY - FBI Warns of Hive Ransomware Following Attack Against Hospital System - On August 25, 2021, the FBI issued a Flash Alert to warn companies, especially in the health care industry, about the proliferation...more
When GDPR became effective three years ago, companies took notice of the fines and penalties attached to violations of the stringent privacy law—4 percent of global annual sales....more
Ireland’s Data Protection Commission has imposed a fine of €225 million (more than $267 million) on WhatsApp, a popular messaging app owned by Facebook. Here are some key takeaways for companies subject to GDPR:.....more
Germany’s largest consumer protection organisation calls on Clubhouse operator Alpha Exploration Co. to cease and desist from illegal business practices and data protection violations. According to a statement by the...more
Facebook, the parent company to WhatsApp, is reporting near-record low revenue growth. Thus, presumably in an effort to monetize WhatsApp more heavily, WhatsApp recently announced changes to its privacy policy: as of...more
The latest lame-duck Covid relief package proposal would trim about 150 billion dollars (and a number of key sticking points, including funds “to bolster state and local governments, and a temporary coronavirus liability...more
The Situation: An investigation launched in 2016 by the German competition authority was meant to determine if Facebook was abusing its market position with its imposition of "misleading" data protection policies. The...more
The German antitrust authority (FCO) has ordered Facebook to stop collecting data outside Facebook’s platform without the user’s “voluntary consent.” The decision breaks new ground because it links data protection and...more
Europe's General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) became effective last Friday, May 25. That same day, the non-profit NOYB (from the colloquial “none of your business”) filed lawsuits against Google, together with...more
On May 18, 2017, the EU Commission sentenced Facebook to a “proportionate and deterrent” fine of €110 million for providing misleading information during the investigation of Facebook’s acquisition of WhatsApp. This decision...more
The European Commission's proposed e-privacy regulation sets forth obligations on handling electronic communications and clarifies obligations for seeking consent for the use of cookies. Meant to bring the e-privacy directive...more