Enforcement - Federal Agency and State AG Action

On January 23, 2017, the FTC released a new report outlining its recommendations for companies using cross-device tracking. The report focused on the FTC’s continued commitment to consumer choice, transparency, and security.

What is cross-device tracking?

Cross-device tracking occurs when companies attempt to connect a consumer’s activities across multiple devices. For example, a consumer begins…

On December 1, 2016, the Commission on Enhancing National Cybersecurity (Commission)—established ten months earlier by President Obama—released its Report on Securing and Growing the Digital Economy (Report).  The 50-page Report includes six major imperatives with 16 recommendations and 53 associated action items to improve national cybersecurity. The Commission is a non-partisan panel comprised of 12…

The GDPR harmonizes data protection laws across the EU and updates the current 20-year-old regime to take account of globalization and the ever-changing technology landscape.  It will apply not only to EU companies, but to any company processing the personal data of individuals in the EU in relation to offering goods or services, or to…

Yesterday afternoon Yahoo Inc. (Yahoo) announced that user information was stolen from more than one billion accounts in August 2013. Yahoo said that the stolen information includes, “names, email addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, hashed passwords (using MD5) and, in some cases, encrypted or unencrypted security questions and answers” but does not include bank…

State attorneys general play an active role in data privacy and security matters. Their involvement is increasing as they grapple with changing technologies and threats, rapidly evolving state laws and their relatively broad consumer protection authority to engage private sector custodians of personal data such as retailers, financial institutions, technology companies, and health systems. In…

As the healthcare industry continues to embrace the Internet of Things, cybersecurity may present unprecedented health and privacy risks to patients. Wireless-enabled medical devices are increasingly common. For some patients, this means that their hearts are, quite literally, connected to the Internet of Things. For others, mobile medical apps and wearable products are collecting…

In another twist in the LabMD case, LabMD has succeeded in obtaining a delay on the FTC’s enforcement action during its appeal.  Of course, the substantive issues remain to be determined.

In 2013, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued an administrative complaint against LabMD for alleged “unfair” data security practices culminating in an Opinion…

The celebratory confetti has barely settled on the campaign office floor, but in the age of patches, hacks, and cyberattacks, the nation’s attention has shifted to how President-elect Donald Trump will manage U.S. privacy and data security issues.

During the campaign, Mr. Trump did not extensively outline a cybersecurity plan, but from the information provided…