On June 8, magazine publisher Trusted Media Brands, Inc. settled a class action lawsuit for $8.2 million after purportedly disclosing the personal information and magazine choices of customers to third parties. The lawsuit, Taylor v. Trusted Media Brands, Inc., No. 7:16-cv-01812 (S.D.N.Y. June 8, 2017), alleged that the publisher’s actions violated Michigan’s Video Rental Privacy […]
Privacy & Cybersecurity Litigation
France adopts new regime for privacy class actions
A few weeks ago, France passed the Digital Republic Act which significantly enhances French citizens’ rights to privacy by offering new avenues to exercise rights and granting new powers to the French data protection authority. A recent amendment to the Data Protection Act, adopted November 18, 2016, goes a mile farther and introduces a new […]
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 […]
Eighth Circuit Decision Interpreting Spokeo Shows Impact of Supreme Court Decision on Privacy Actions
In issuing its decision in Braitberg v. Charter Communications, the Eighth Circuit recently became the first federal appellate court to issue a published opinion interpreting Spokeo and, as predicted, shows that the Supreme Court’s ruling will have a significant impact on the viability of privacy-related claims. In Braitberg, the plaintiff alleged that Charter indefinitely retained […]