The FTC and the State of New Jersey recently announced a settlement with Vizio, Inc., in the amount of $2.2 million for tracking consumer behavior using its smart television devices. The complaint alleged that Vizio acted unfairly by collecting, storing (indefinitely) and sharing consumer data with third parties without consent and in an unexpected manner. […]
Online Privacy
ECJ Declares IP Addresses are Personal Data
Today, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) issued its long-awaited decision in Breyer v. Germany. Breyer addresses the question of whether IP addresses are “personal data” for purposes of EU data protection law. As is widely known, personal data is any information that would permit a particular individual to be identified, whether directly or in […]
Supreme Court Denies Cert in Leading Case on Internet Tracking and Analytics
The Supreme Court recently declined to review In re Google Inc. Cookie Placement Consumer Privacy Litigation—a consolidated class action alleging that Google and third-party advertisers evaded web browser privacy settings, causing cookies to be placed on plaintiffs’ computers. 806 F.3d 125 (3d Cir. 2015), cert. denied sub nom. Gourley v. Google, Inc., 84 U.S.L.W. 3531 […]
FTC Issues Warning Letters to 28 Companies Claiming Participation in the APEC CBPR System
On July 14, 2016, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that it had issued warning letters to 28 companies regarding their claim of participation in the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Cross Border Privacy Rule (APEC CBPR) system. The APEC CBPR system is a voluntary, enforceable mechanism that certifies a company’s compliance with the principles in […]
Art. 29 Working Party Issues Formal Opinion Opposing Privacy Shield
Several hours after holding a closely-watched press conference we reported on yesterday, the Article 29 Working Party (“Art. 29 WP”) released its highly anticipated formal opinion on the adequacy of Privacy Shield. Background The European Commission has put forth a draft “adequacy decision” in which it declares that on the basis of Privacy Shield, the […]