On December 27, ruling in American Civil Liberties Union v Clapper, No. 13 Civ. 9334 (S.D.N.Y. Dec. 27, 2013), federal district Judge William H. Pauley III granted the government’s motion to dismiss a complaint brought by the ACLU challenging the constitutionality of the NSA’s bulk collection of telephone metadata. Telephone metadata consists of the record […]
Mobile Technologies
NSA Collection of Metadata Ruled Unconstitutional
On December 16, Federal District Judge for the District of Columbia Richard Leon held the National Security Administration’s collection of telephone metadata to be an unconstitutional invasion of privacy under the Fourth Amendment. Previous challenges to governmental collection of telephone metadata have met with failure, and the ruling marks the first time a federal court […]
FTC Settles with Flashlight App Developer Over Charges It Transmitted Geolocation Data Without Consumers’ Knowledge
The creator of the popular “Brightest Flashlight Free” Android app has agreed to settle with the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) over charges that the app deceived consumers regarding the collection of geolocation information that was shared with third parties. The app, created by Goldenshores Technologies, LLC, (“Goldenshores”) turns a mobile device into a flashlight by […]
Prior Express Written Consent Now Required for Sending Marketing Messages via Robocall or Text Message; Questions Remain Regarding Pre-Existing Databases and Purely Informational Messages
Companies that have amassed databases of consumers’ landline and mobile numbers for telemarketing purposes are left in a quandary as to whether they must obtain additional consent from consumers to comply with the new Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”) rule. As of Wednesday October 16, 2013 companies that use prerecorded calls, autodialers or text messages […]