Legal Alert | Wiretap Laws in the United States
Anti-Wiretap Class Actions Against Website Operators Surge, but Proper Consent Can Reduce Risk
Webinar Recording – Assessing the Surge in Wiretap Litigation
Is Edward Snowden a Whistleblower?
Rajaratnam Judge: Wiretaps in Insider Trading Cases are "Radical"
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
Yahoo’s ConnectID is a cookieless identity solution that allows advertisers and publishers to personalize, measure, and perform ad campaigns by leveraging first-party data and 1-to-1 consumer relationships. ConnectID uses...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
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
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
In a highly anticipated decision on an issue facing courts across the country, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court held in late October that Massachusetts hospitals’ use of online tracking technologies that collect and...more
Companies commonly use tracking technologies – such as Meta’s “Pixel” software or “Google Analytics” – on their websites for various reasons. In numerous class actions across the country, plaintiffs have claimed that the use...more
The California Invasion of Privacy Act (“CIPA”) and the Massachusetts Wiretap Act (“MWA”) are state statutes which prohibit the unlawful recording of communications. As our readers can guess, CIPA and MWA originally were...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
In a significant decision for website operators, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court clarified that tracking users’ web activity does not constitute illegal wiretapping under the state’s Wiretap Act. The court found that...more
Frequent readers of this blog are aware of the surge in lawsuits alleging that companies illegally wiretap consumers when they utilize software which tracks consumers’ interactions on their websites. The majority of these...more
California continues to grapple with a significant surge in lawsuits and arbitration demands aimed at businesses operating websites employing technology to monitor online activities. These cases hinge on the California...more
The California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA) was originally passed in 1967 to curb unlawful telephone wiretapping. Now, in the age of website tracking technologies, this outdated law is being wielded by plaintiffs’ attorneys...more
California businesses are experiencing a tsunami of demands and complaints alleging class action status that applies the well-established 1960’s California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA) to the internet’s new technology. CIPA...more
A new species of website privacy litigation has taken hold in 2024, based on arcane provisions of the California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA) that restrict law enforcement’s use of pen register or trap and trace devices...more
For the past several years, website owners that gather data from California residents have faced a surge in class action lawsuits and threatened lawsuits alleging violations of the California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA)....more
In the latest example of privacy laws being stretched to fit new digital technologies, plaintiffs have begun to file a flurry of suits alleging that retailers are using pen register and trap-and-trace software to illegally...more
The proliferation of class action lawsuit and arbitration claim filings under the Federal Wiretap Act and various state wiretap statutes has recently grown beyond California, as other states are now beginning to see more...more
Plaintiffs look to the past to take action against modern web tracking - As states rapidly enact new consumer privacy legislation, businesses have been working tirelessly to comply with extensive new data protection...more
California was the first US state with a comprehensive privacy law the California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”), 4 more states followed with omnibus privacy laws effective this year and state legislatures passed 8 more this...more
Companies in all industries and of all sizes are evaluating sophisticated and useful technology for their websites and applica- tions (their “apps”) in an effort to enhance and develop their image or brand and to support...more
Some common digital marketing techniques used by PEOs have become the recent target of data security litigation – and you should consider taking mitigating measures if your PEO deploys these strategies to put yourself in a...more
If your company has a website and does not disclose the use of session replay software or that the chats on its website are being transcribed, please read this important alert. ...more
Website session replay technology continues to fuel class action litigation alleging violations of anti-wiretap laws in all-party consent states. In 2021, we issued an alert highlighting that session replay lawsuits were...more
The second half of 2022 saw a wave of class action litigation under state wiretapping laws against website operators that use widely deployed online technologies, such as chatboxes and session replay software....more