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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Is Edward Snowden a Whistleblower?
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
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
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
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
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
What do a nearly 60-year-old statute on wiretapping and your website have in common? Enough to potentially impose liability on your organization, according to recent lawsuits. We have seen an astronomical increase in...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
For the past two years, hundreds of class action lawsuits alleging violations of the California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA) have plagued California retailers and consumer-facing service providers. These lawsuits claim,...more
The Authors previously published the below client alert on June 8, 2023, analyzing privacy litigation under the California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA) and other wiretap statutes in Pennsylvania and Maryland. We provide...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
Attention Lead Generators. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently held that use of certain technologies on a websites in order to track and record web session data before obtaining affirmative consent may be a...more