Legal Alert | Wiretap Laws in the United States
Anti-Wiretap Class Actions Against Website Operators Surge, but Proper Consent Can Reduce Risk
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Rajaratnam Judge: Wiretaps in Insider Trading Cases are "Radical"
Businesses just received some good news when a federal court dismissed a California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA) claim that aimed to expand the reach of the state’s wiretapping law to cover internet communications. The...more
In a big win for businesses, a California federal court just held that a “tester” plaintiff – someone who visits websites for purposes of initiating litigation – cannot bring a claim under the California Invasion of Privacy...more
In late March, an online retailer successfully asserted consent as a complete defense to a putative Pennsylvania Wiretapping and Electronic Surveillance Control Act of 1978 (WESCA) class action lawsuit, resulting in the...more
An oft-discussed topic on this blog is the rise in lawsuits asserting illegal wiretapping claims against companies that use technology on their websites to track consumer interactions. Recently, a Pennsylvania federal judge...more
Welcome to the twentieth installment in our monthly data privacy litigation report. We prepare these reports to provide updates on how courts in the United States have handled emerging data privacy trends. After our expansive...more
Two recent court decisions have provided businesses with long-awaited clarity on the reach of the California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA) – and could begin to redefine digital privacy litigation for the better. Two separate...more
It is hard to believe that we are starting the 25th year of the 21st century. The rapid evolution that technology, privacy and data security have undergone these last 25 years is mindbending. Yet, as we enter 2025, it still...more
Some businesses might be surprised to learn that digital wiretapping litigation claims are one of today’s fastest-growing compliance risks, with over 1,560 lawsuits filed in 28 states since a groundbreaking 2022 decision...more
Readers of this blog may recall a recent favorable decision handed down by Massachusetts State’s highest court in which it found that Massachusetts Wiretap Act claims (“MWA”) do not extend to consumer interactions with...more
Welcome to the nineteenth installment in our monthly data privacy litigation report. We prepare these reports to provide updates on how courts in the United States have handled emerging data privacy trends. We are covering...more
In what appears to be a first-of-its-kind decision, a California federal court just granted class certification in a wiretapping claim brought against a website operator that used third-party technology to track users’...more
Many people are thinking of holiday cookies at this time of year, but your favorite privacy lawyers are still thinking more about the non-delicious kind: those enabling common features on websites and online services. That’s...more
Massachusetts’ highest court recently issued an opinion that delves into the complex intersection of privacy law and modern technology. The case centers around whether the collection and transmission of users’ web browsing...more
Publications & Advisories - November 2024 – Kathleen Benway, Jennifer Everett, Alysa Austin, and Kristen Bartolotta published “Federal Trade Commission’s Updated Health Breach Notification Rule Is Now in Effect” in Employee...more
In a critical new decision, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court has confirmed that the state’s anti-wiretapping statute does not extend to website tracking technologies. In Vita v. New England Baptist Hospital, the Court...more
October has offered valuable insights for companies managing privacy obligations related to user tracking, with courts issuing opinions on various wiretap laws and the Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA) in the context of...more
Over the past decade, businesses and institutions with public-facing websites have increasingly turned to internet tracking technologies, such as cookies, pixels, and session replay tools, to optimize their websites and offer...more
Keypoint: Massachusetts’ highest court ruled the use of software that tracks users’ activity on its website does not violate the state’s Wiretap Act, which was intended to prevent the recording or interception of...more
Readers of this blog are aware of the surge in consumer privacy lawsuits alleging that the use of third-party tracking technology to collect consumer data while visiting a website constitutes illegal wiretapping. While most...more
Businesses that use website tracking software to monitor activity for marketing purposes must comply with a growing list of state laws – but does that include a nearly 60-year-old Massachusetts law requiring consent to record...more
Keypoint: California district courts continue to split over whether “knowledge” is required to plead liability under Section 631(a)’s fourth prong while two decisions show courts taking different approaches to VPPA claims at...more
Keypoint: Courts have started to issue Pixel-based wiretapping decisions, the Seventh Circuit weighs in on when a manufacturer can be forced to pay arbitration fees, and three courts showed different approaches to dismissing...more
Keypoint: Courts reject personal jurisdiction arguments and suggest the Shopify decision will be overturned; Courts continue to show differing approaches to VPPA claims at the pleading stage with a large VPPA class action...more
Readers of this blog likely know about the wave of consumer privacy litigation directed at online companies’ collection of consumer data. A litany of these cases are brought by Swigart Law Group, APC (“Swigart Law”), a law...more
Keypoint: The Central District of California issued several wiretapping decisions in May while two decisions on the VPPA illustrate how claims fail or succeed at the pleading stage. Welcome to the fourteenth installment in...more