Privacy & Information Security Law Blog

On January 28, 2016, the Senate Judiciary Committee passed the Judicial Redress Act (the “Act”), which would give EU citizens the right to sue over certain data privacy issues in the U.S. The Act passed after an amendment was approved which would condition EU citizens’ right to sue on EU Member States (1) allowing companies to transfer personal data to the U.S. for commercial purposes and (2) having personal data transfer policies which do not materially impede the national security interests of the U.S. The vote was initially set to take place on January 21, 2016, but was delayed.

On January 21, 2016, a Senate Judiciary Committee vote on the Judicial Redress Act, which would give EU citizens the right to sue over certain data privacy issues in the U.S., has reportedly been postponed. As reported by Forbes, the vote may have been delayed due to amendments to the fifth paragraph of the bill, which deals with litigation pursuant to the act. The vote was initially scheduled for today.

On January 5, 2016, the Federal Trade Commission announced that dental office management software provider, Henry Schein Practice Solutions, Inc. (“Schein”), agreed to settle FTC charges that accused the company of falsely advertising the level of encryption it used to protect patient data. The proposed Agreement Containing Consent Order (“Consent Order”) stems from an FTC complaint that alleged the company engaged in unfair or deceptive acts or practices by falsely representing that the Dentrix G5 software used industry-standard encryption and helped dentists protect patient data in accordance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (“HIPAA”).

On December 30, 2015, the Department of Defense (“DoD”) issued a second interim rule (80 F. R. 81472) that extends the deadline by which federal contractors must implement the new cybersecurity requirements previously issued by the agency.  This extension pushes back the compliance deadline to December 31, 2017.

On December 21, 2015, the Federal Trade Commission announced software company Oracle Corporation (“Oracle”) has agreed to settle FTC charges that accused the company of misrepresenting the security of its software updates. The proposed Agreement Containing Consent Order (“Consent Order”) stems from an FTC complaint that alleged the company had deceived consumers about the security provided by updates to the Java Platform, Standard Edition software (“Java SE”).

On December 17, 2015, the Federal Trade Commission announced that LifeLock, Inc. (“LifeLock”) has agreed to pay $100 million to settle contempt charges for deceptive advertising. According to the FTC, “[t]his is the largest monetary award obtained by the Commission in an order enforcement action.” Under the terms of the settlement, $68 million of the settlement amount will be paid to class action consumers who were injured by the identity theft protection company’s violation of a 2010 settlement with the FTC that required LifeLock to protect consumer information. The rest of the money will be used for settlements with state attorneys general, and any remaining money will go to the FTC. The case is Federal Trade Commission v. LifeLock Inc., et al. (2:10-cv-00530), in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona.

On December 14, 2015, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) announced that it had settled potential HIPAA Security Rule violations with the University of Washington on behalf of the university’s medical center, medical school and affiliated labs and clinics (collectively, “UW Medical”).

On December 16, 2015, leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate released a $1.1 trillion omnibus spending bill that contained cybersecurity information sharing language that is based on a compromise between the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act, which passed in the Senate in October, and two cybersecurity information sharing bills that passed in the House earlier this year. Specifically, the omnibus spending bill included Division N, the Cybersecurity Act of 2015 (the "Act"). 

On November 30, 2015, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) announced that Triple-S Management Corporation ("Triple-S"), an insurance holding company based in San Juan, Puerto Rico, agreed on behalf of certain of its subsidiaries to settle potential violations of the HIPAA Privacy and Security Rules with HHS’s Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”).

As reported in the Hunton Employment & Labor Law Perspectives Blog:

On October 27, 2015, the Ninth Circuit held in EEOC v. McLane Co., Inc. that the EEOC has broad subpoena powers to obtain nationwide private personnel information, including Social Security numbers (“SSNs”), in connection with its investigation of a sex discrimination charge.

On November 9, 2015, U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon issued a preliminary injunction ordering the National Security Agency to stop its bulk telephony metadata program. The preliminary injunction was issued in favor of subscribers of Verizon Wireless Business Network and comes 20 days before the program was set to expire under the USA Freedom Act. The case is Klayman v. Obama et al. (1:13-cv-00851) in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

On November 3, 2015, John Murphy, Senior Vice President for International Policy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, testified about the Court of Justice of the European Union’s (“CJEU’s”) EU-U.S. Safe Harbor Decision at a joint hearing of the House Commerce and Communications and Technology Subcommittees.

On October 27, 2015, the U.S. Senate passed S.754 - Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act of 2015 (“CISA”) by a vote of 74 to 21. CISA is intended to facilitate and encourage the sharing of Internet traffic information between and among companies and the federal government to prevent cyber attacks, by giving companies legal immunity from antitrust and privacy lawsuits. CISA comes in the wake of numerous recent, high-profile cyber attacks.

On October 23, 2015, the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota, in large part, upheld Target’s assertion of the attorney-client privilege and work-product protections for information associated with a privileged, internal investigation of Target’s 2013 data breach.

Hunton & Williams welcomes Phyllis H. Marcus as counsel to the firm’s privacy and competition teams. Phyllis joins the firm from the Federal Trade Commission, where she held a number of leadership positions, most recently as Chief of Staff of the Division of Advertising Practices. Phyllis led the FTC’s children’s online privacy program, including bringing a number of enforcement actions and overhauling the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”) Rule. She offers the privacy team a keen understanding of the complexities of the revised regulations, as well as broader issues relating to student privacy, mobile applications and the Internet of Things.

On September 11, 2015, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) announced that Lyft Inc. (“Lyft”) and First National Bank Corporation (“FNB”) violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”) by forcing their users to consent to receive automated text messages as a condition of using their services. The FCC warned that these violations could result in fines if they continue.

On September 17, 2015, the Seventh Circuit rejected Neiman Marcus’ petition for a rehearing en banc of Remijas v. Neiman Marcus Group, LLC, No. 14-3122. In Remijas, a Seventh Circuit panel found that members of a putative class alleged sufficient facts to establish standing to sue Neiman Marcus following a 2013 data breach that resulted in hackers gaining access to customers’ credit and debit card information. No judge in regular active service requested a vote on the rehearing petition. Additionally, all members of the original panel voted to deny rehearing. As we previously reported, and according to The Practitioner's Handbook for Appeals to the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, “it is more likely to have a petition for writ of certiorari granted by the Supreme Court than to have a request for en banc consideration granted” in the Seventh Circuit.

On September 15, 2015, the Office of Compliance, Inspections and Examinations (“OCIE”) at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) issued a Risk Alert outlining its latest cybersecurity examination priorities for SEC-registered broker-dealers and investment advisers.

On August 26, 2015, the U.S. Department of Defense (“DoD”) published an interim rule entitled Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement: Network Penetration Reporting and Contracting for Cloud Services (DFARS Case 2013–D018) (the “Interim Rule”), that streamlines the obligations for contractors to report network penetrations and establishes DoD requirements for contracting with cloud computing service providers. The Interim Rule amends the information security contracting framework set forth in the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (“DFARS”) to implement section 941 of the National Defense Authorization Act (“NDAA”) for Fiscal Year (“FY”) 2013 and section 1632 of the NDAA for FY 2015, both of which impose cyber incident reporting obligations on contractors.

On August 24, 2015, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit issued its opinion in Federal Trade Commission v. Wyndham Worldwide Corporation (“Wyndham”), affirming a district court holding that the Federal Trade Commission has the authority to regulate companies’ data security practices.

On August 17, 2015, the Federal Trade Commission announced proposed settlements with 13 companies over allegations that they misled consumers by falsely claiming to be Safe Harbor certified when their certifications had lapsed or they had never been certified at all.

On August 3, 2015, Neiman Marcus requested en banc review of the Seventh Circuit’s recent decision in Remijas v. Neiman Marcus Group, LLC, No. 14-3122. As we previously reported, the Seventh Circuit found that members of a putative class alleged sufficient facts to establish standing to sue Neiman Marcus following a 2013 data breach. During that breach, hackers gained access to customers’ credit and debit card information.

On July 20, 2015, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit reversed a previous decision that dismissed a putative data breach class action against Neiman Marcus for lack of Article III standing. Remijas et al. v. Neiman Marcus Group, LLC, No. 14-3122.

On July 10, 2015, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) released a Declaratory Ruling and Order that provides guidance with respect to several sections of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”). The Declaratory Ruling and Order responds to 21 separate requests from industry, government and others seeking clarifications regarding the TCPA and related FCC rules.

On July 10, 2015, the United States House of Representatives passed the 21st Century Cures Act (the “Act”), which is intended to ease restrictions on the use and disclosure of protected health information (“PHI”) for research purposes.

On June 30, 2015, the Federal Trade Commission announced its new “Start With Security” business education initiative, which will provide businesses with information on data security and how to protect consumer information.

Hunton & Williams LLP partners Lisa J. Sotto, Scott H. Kimpel and Matthew P. Bosher recently published an article in Westlaw Journal’s Securities Litigation & Regulation entitled SEC Cybersecurity Investigations: A How-to Guide. The article details the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (“SEC’s”) role in cybersecurity regulation and enforcement, and offers best practice tips for navigating the investigative process. In the article, the authors note that the threat of an SEC enforcement investigation must be considered an integral part of cybersecurity ...

The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California recently granted, only in part, a motion to dismiss a data breach class action against Sony Pictures Entertainment, Inc. (“Sony”) in Corona v. Sony Pictures Entertainment, Inc., No. 14-CV-09600 (RGK) (C.D. Cal. June 15, 2015). The case therefore will proceed with some of the claims intact.

On June 16, 2015, the Consumer Federation of America announced in a joint statement with other privacy advocacy groups that they would no longer participate in the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (“NTIA”) multistakeholder process to develop a code of conduct regarding the commercial use of facial recognition technology. The letter was signed by the Center for Democracy & Technology, the Center for Digital Democracy, the Consumer Federation of America, Common Sense Media, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the American Civil Liberties Union, Consumer Action, Consumer Watchdog and the Center on Privacy & Technology at Georgetown University Law Center. This decision comes after 16 months of meetings and negotiations. In its announcement, the group highlighted its inability to come to an agreement with industry groups on how the issue of consumer consent would be addressed in a code of conduct regarding the use of facial recognition technology. Specifically, the disagreement between consumer and industry groups revolved around the default rule for consumer consent (i.e., whether the default should be opt-in or opt-out consent).

On June 2, 2015, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (“NIST”) issued a press release on its recently published draft report, entitled Privacy Risk Management Framework for Federal Information Systems (the “Report”). The Report describes a privacy risk management framework (“PRMF”) for federal information systems designed to promote “a greater understanding of privacy impacts and the capability to address them in federal information systems through risk management.” The draft PRMF includes a Privacy Risk Assessment Methodology (“PRAM”) consisting of several worksheets for assessing the privacy impact of data actions.

On May 20, 2015, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) released an Enforcement Advisory announcing that its previously-released Open Internet Order “applies the core customer privacy protections of Section 222 of the Communications Act to providers of broadband Internet access service” and that the statutory provisions of Section 222, which historically have been used to protect Consumer Proprietary Network Information on telephone networks, will apply to broadband providers when the Open Internet Order goes into effect on June 12, 2015. This approach will expand broadband providers’ requirements to protect consumer privacy and limit their use of consumer data.

On May 7, 2015, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit sided with the American Civil Liberties Union, holding that the National Security Agency’s (“NSA’s”) collection of metadata relating to domestic phone records is not permitted under the PATRIOT Act. This ruling overturns a December 2013 Southern District of New York decision finding that the NSA’s telephone data collection program is lawful under Section 215 of the PATRIOT Act. The Second Circuit did not issue a preliminary injunction to stop the program or address questions as to whether the program is ...

On March 31, 2015, the Electronic Privacy Information Center (“EPIC”) filed a petition (the “Petition”) with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit accusing the Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration (“FAA”) of unlawfully failing to include privacy rules in the FAA’s proposed framework of regulations for unmanned aircraft systems (“UAS”), otherwise known as drones. The Petition stems from the FAA’s November 2014 denial of another EPIC petition calling for the FAA to address the threat of privacy and civil liberties associated with the deployment of aerial drones within the U.S.

On April 23, 2015, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced that Nomi Technologies (“Nomi”) has agreed to settle charges stemming from allegations that the company misled consumers with respect to their ability to opt out of the company’s mobile device tracking service at retail locations. The settlement marks the FTC’s first Section 5 enforcement action against a company that provides tracking services at retailers.

The House of Representatives passed two complimentary bills related to cybersecurity, the “Protecting Cyber Networks Act” (H.R. 1560) and the “National Cybersecurity Protection Advancement Act of 2015” (H.R. 1731). These bills provide, among other things, liability protection for (1) the use of monitoring and defensive measures to protect information systems, and (2) the sharing of cybersecurity threat information amongst non-federal entities and with the federal government. With the Senate having just recently overcome disagreement on sex trafficking legislation and the Attorney General nomination, that body is now expected to consider similar information sharing legislation entitled the “Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act” (S. 754) in the coming weeks. Assuming S. 754 also is passed by the Senate, the two Chambers of Congress will convene a Conference Committee to draft a single piece of legislation which will be then voted on by the House and Senate, before heading to the President’s desk. The White House has not committed to signing any resulting legislation, but has signaled some positive support.

On April 7, 2015, the FTC announced proposed settlements with TES Franchising, LLC, an organization specializing in business coaching, and American International Mailing, Inc., an alternative mail transporting company, related to charges that the companies falsely claimed they were compliant with the U.S.-EU and U.S.-Swiss Safe Harbor Frameworks.

On April 8, 2015, the Federal Communications Commission announced a $25 million settlement with AT&T Services, Inc. (“AT&T”) stemming from allegations that AT&T failed to protect the confidentiality of consumers’ personal information, resulting in data breaches at AT&T call centers in Mexico, Colombia and the Philippines. The breaches, which took place over 168 days from November 2013 to April 2014, involved unauthorized access to customers’ names, full or partial Social Security numbers and certain protected account-related data, affecting almost 280,000 U.S. customers.

On March 23, 2015, the Federal Trade Commission announced the formation of the Office of Technology Research and Investigation (“OTRI”), which the FTC describes as “an office designed to expand the FTC’s capacity to protect consumers in an age of rapid technological innovation.”

On March 13, 2015, the U.S. Department of Commerce Internet Policy Task Force (“IPTF”) issued a request for public comment regarding cybersecurity issues affecting the digital economy. The IPTF’s request invites all stakeholders interested in cybersecurity to “identify substantive cybersecurity issues that affect the digital ecosystem and digital economic growth where broad consensus, coordinated action, and the development of best practices could substantially improve security for organizations and consumers.” For each issue identified, the IPTF’s request for comment asks interested parties to opine on a series of questions, including (1) why the issue is suited to a multistakeholder process and (2) why a multistakeholder process would benefit the digital ecosystem.

On March 9, 2015, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (the “Memorandum”) with the Dutch Data Protection Authority (the “Dutch DPA”).

On March 4, 2015, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (“NTIA”) announced a new multistakeholder process seeking comments on best practices concerning privacy, transparency and accountability issues related to the use of commercial and private unmanned aircraft systems (“UAS”), otherwise known as drones. The NTIA’s request was made in response to a Presidential Memorandum issued by the White House on February 15 which directed NTIA to facilitate discussion between private sector entities to develop standards for commercial UAS use.

On February 26, 2015, the Department of Education’s Privacy Technical Assistance Center (“PTAC”) issued guidance to assist schools, school districts and vendors with understanding the primary laws regulating student privacy and how compliance with those laws may be affected by Terms of Service (“TOS”) offered by providers of online educational services and mobile applications. The guidance also is intended to aid school districts and schools in implementing separate guidance issued by the PTAC in February 2014. The guidance was accompanied by a short training video directed to teachers, administrators and other relevant staff.

On March 3, 2015, the Third Circuit heard oral arguments in FTC v. Wyndham Worldwide Corp. (“Wyndham”) on whether the FTC has the authority to regulate private companies’ data security under Section 5 of the FTC Act.

On February 27, 2015, the White House released a highly-anticipated draft of the Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights Act of 2015 (the “Act”) that seeks to establish baseline protections for individual privacy in the commercial context and to facilitate the implementation of these protections through enforceable codes of conduct. The Federal Trade Commission is tasked with the primary responsibility for promulgating regulations and enforcing the rights and obligations set forth in the Act.

On February 15, 2015, the White House released a Presidential Memorandum entitled “Promoting Economic Competitiveness While Safeguarding Privacy, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties in Domestic Use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems” (the “Memorandum”) to address the privacy, civil rights and civil liberties concerns associated with the federal government’s use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (“UAS”). The Memorandum provides privacy expectations for the federal government’s use of UAS by setting requirements for federal agencies to establish and maintain privacy and civil liberty safeguards, as well as by placing restrictions on certain information collection and use practices.

On February 13, 2015, at the White House’s Cybersecurity and Consumer Protection Summit at Stanford University, President Obama signed an executive order promoting private sector cybersecurity information sharing (“Executive Order”). Building on the current cybersecurity information sharing efforts of Information Sharing and Analysis Centers and groups such as the National Cyber-Forensics and Training Alliance, the new Executive Order emphasizes the need for private companies, non-profit organizations and government agencies to share information about cyber threats, vulnerabilities and incidents. Its purpose is to facilitate private-private and public-private cybersecurity information sharing while (1) protecting the privacy and civil liberties of individuals; (2) protecting business confidentiality; (3) safeguarding shared information; and (4) protecting the government’s ability to detect, investigate, prevent and respond to cyber threats.

On January 27, 2015, the Federal Trade Commission announced the release of a report on the Internet of Things: Privacy and Security in a Connected World (the “Report”). The Report describes the current state of the Internet of Things, analyzes the benefits and risks of its development, applies privacy principles to the Internet of Things and discusses whether legislation is needed to address this burgeoning area. The Report follows a workshop by the FTC on this topic in November 2013.

On January 21, 2015, the Federal Trade Commission announced that the U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois granted partial summary judgment on December 12, 2014, to the federal government in its action against Dish Network LLC (“Dish”), alleging that Dish violated certain aspects of the Telemarketing Sales Rule (“TSR”) that restrict placing calls to numbers on the National Do-Not-Call Registry and an entity’s internal Do-Not-Call list. The federal government is joined in the action against Dish by four state attorneys general alleging violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act and certain state laws related to telemarketing.

On January 13, 2015, President Obama announced legislative proposals and administration efforts with respect to cybersecurity, including a specific proposal for a national data breach notification standard. Aside from the national data breach notification standard, the President’s other proposals are designed to (1) encourage the private sector to increase the sharing of information related to cyber threats with the federal government and (2) modernize law enforcement to effectively prosecute illegal conduct related to cybersecurity.

On December 18, 2014, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) issued a $1 million civil penalty against Thomas E. Haider, the former Chief Compliance Officer of MoneyGram International, Inc. (“MoneyGram”). In a press release announcing the assessment, FinCEN alleged that during Haider’s oversight of compliance for MoneyGram, he failed to adequately respond to thousands of customer complaints regarding schemes that utilized MoneyGram to defraud consumers. In coordination with FinCEN, the U.S. Attorney’s office in the Southern District of New York filed a civil complaint on the same day, seeking a $1 million civil judgment against Haider to collect on the assessment and requesting injunctive relief barring him from participating in the affairs of any financial institution located or conducting business in the United States.

On December 19, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission announced a settlement of at least $90 million with mobile phone carrier T-Mobile USA, Inc. (“T-Mobile”) stemming from allegations related to mobile cramming. This settlement amount will primarily be used to provide refunds to affected customers who were charged by T-Mobile for unauthorized third party charges. As part of the settlement, T-Mobile also will pay $18 million in fines and penalties to the attorneys general of all 50 states and the District of Columbia, and $4.5 million to the Federal Communications Commission.

In a flurry of activity on cybersecurity in the waning days of the 113th Congress, Congress unexpectedly approved, largely without debate and by voice vote, four cybersecurity bills that: (1) clarify the role of the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) in private-sector information sharing, (2) codify the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s (“NIST”) cybersecurity framework, (3) reform oversight of federal information systems, and (4) enhance the cybersecurity workforce. The President is expected to sign all four bills. The approved legislation is somewhat limited as it largely codifies agency activity already underway. With many observers expecting little legislative activity on cybersecurity before the end of the year, however, that Congress has passed and sent major cybersecurity legislation to the White House for the first time in 12 years may signal Congress’ intent to address systems protection issues more thoroughly in the next Congress.

On November 12, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission announced that in response to FTC complaints, a federal court has ordered two debt brokerage companies to notify over 70,000 consumers whose sensitive personal information was posted on a public website by the debt brokerage companies.

On November 17, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission announced that data privacy certifier True Ultimate Standards Everywhere, Inc. (“TRUSTe”) has agreed to settle charges that the company deceived consumers about its recertification program and misrepresented that it was a non-profit entity in violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act.

On October 8, 2014, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia granted Cartoon Network, Inc.’s (“Cartoon Network’s”) motion to dismiss a putative class action alleging that Cartoon Network’s mobile app impermissibly disclosed users’ personally identifiable information (“PII”) to a third party data analytics company under the Video Privacy Protection Act (“VPPA”).

On October 24, 2014, the Federal Communications Commission announced that it intends to impose a $10 million fine on TerraCom, Inc. (“TerraCom”) and YourTel America, Inc. (“YourTel”) for violating privacy laws relating to their customers’ personal information. This announcement marks the FCC’s first enforcement action in the data security arena as well as its largest privacy action to date.

On October 22, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission announced that several interrelated online marketing and advertising companies (“Stipulating Defendants”) agreed to pay nearly $10 million to settle allegations that they engaged in a pattern of text message spamming, robocalling and mobile cramming practices in violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act, the Telemarketing and Consumer Fraud and Abuse Prevention Act, and the Telemarketing Sales Rule.

On October 20, 2014, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) announced a finalized rule that enables certain financial institutions to comply with the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (“GLB”) by publishing their financial privacy notices online instead of mailing them to their customers. The GLB Privacy Rule requires financial institutions to provide privacy notices to their customers on an annual basis. The new disclosure method only applies to financial institutions regulated by the CFPB and does not impact those entities regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission, Commodity Futures Trading Commission or Federal Trade Commission.

On October 8, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission announced an $80 million settlement with mobile phone carrier AT&T Mobility, LLC (“AT&T”) stemming from allegations related to mobile cramming. The $80 million payment to the FTC is part of a larger $105 million settlement between AT&T and various federal and state regulators, including the Federal Communications Commission and the attorneys general of all 50 states and the District of Columbia. According to the FCC, “[t]he settlement is the largest enforcement action in FCC history.”

A recent decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reinforces the importance of obtaining affirmative user consent to website Terms of Use for website owners seeking to enforce those terms against consumers. In Nguyen v. Barnes & Noble Inc., the Ninth Circuit held that Barnes & Noble’s website Terms of Use (“Terms”) were not enforceable against a consumer because the website failed to provide sufficient notice of the Terms, despite having placed conspicuous hyperlinks to the Terms throughout the website.

On September 17, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission announced that the online review site Yelp, Inc., and mobile app developer TinyCo, Inc., have agreed to settle separate charges that they collected personal information from children without parental consent, in violation of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule (the “COPPA Rule”).

On September 3, 2014, the Federal Communications Commission announced that Verizon has agreed to pay $7.4 million to settle an FCC Enforcement Bureau investigation into Verizon’s use of personal information for marketing. The investigation revealed that Verizon had used customers’ personal information for marketing purposes over a multiyear period before notifying the customers of their right to opt out of such marketing.

On September 2, 2014, a federal district court in California granted final approval to a settlement ending a class action against Bank of America (“BofA”) and FIA Card Services stemming from allegations that the defendants “engaged in a systematic practice of calling or texting consumers’ cell phones through the use of automatic telephone dialing systems and/or an artificial or prerecorded voice without their prior express consent, in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”).” The court granted preliminary approval to the settlement in December 2013.

On September 4, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission announced a proposed settlement with Google Inc. (“Google”) stemming from allegations that the company unfairly billed consumers for mobile app charges incurred by children. The FTC’s complaint alleges that since 2011, Google violated the FTC Act’s prohibition on unfair commercial practices by billing consumers for in-app charges made by children without the authorization of the account holder.

On August 14, 2014, the Centre for Information Policy Leadership at Hunton & Williams (the “Centre”) submitted its response to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s (“NTIA’s”) request for public comment on big data and consumer privacy issues. The NTIA’s request, which follows the White House’s recent study of big data, the May 2014 Big Data Report, and the associated President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology Report, seeks further public input on how big data impacts the Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights, and whether the Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights should be modified to contemplate big data.

On August 14, 2014, the Center for Digital Democracy (“CDD”) filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission and requested that the Commission investigate 30 companies certified to the U.S.-EU Safe Harbor Framework. In the complaint, CDD maintains that it analyzed 30 data marketing and profiling companies that currently are Safe Harbor-certified and identified the following five overarching themes that CDD claims “underscore the fundamental weakness of the Safe Harbor in its current incarnation,” including that the companies: 

On August 6, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it had approved a safe harbor program submitted by the Internet Keep Safe Coalition (“iKeepSafe”), stating the program provides the “same or greater protections” for children under the age of 13 as those contained in the new Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule (the “COPPA Rule”). An updated version of the COPPA Rule came into effect July 1, 2013.

On July 31, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission published a notice in the Federal Register indicating that it is seeking public comment on its Telemarketing Sales Rule (“TSR”) as “part of the FTC’s systematic review of all current Commission regulations and guides.” In the press release accompanying the Federal Register notice, the FTC stated that its questions for the public focus on (1) the use and sharing of pre-acquired account information in telemarketing, and (2) issues raised by the use of negative-option and free-trial offers in combination with general media ads designed to generate inbound telemarketing calls from consumers. The FTC’s review process comes less than a year after the Federal Communications Commission’s revisions to its Telephone Consumer Protection Act rules became effective.

On July 16, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission posted revisions to its Frequently Asked Questions that provide guidance on complying with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule (the “COPPA Rule”). The revisions, which are in Section H of the FAQs, address the COPPA Rule requirement that operators of certain websites and online services obtain a parent’s consent before collecting personal information online from a child under the age of 13.

On July 10, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it filed a complaint against Amazon.com, Inc. (“Amazon”) for failing to obtain the consent of parents or other account holders prior to billing them for in-app charges incurred by children. According to the complaint, Amazon, which offers children’s apps through its Appstore, bills Amazon account holders in real money for virtual items that children obtain within an app (i.e., “in-app” charges).

On July 2, 2014, the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (“PCLOB”) held a public meeting to finalize the release of a report concluding that the National Security Agency’s (“NSA’s”) collection of electronic communications from targets reasonably believed to be non-U.S. persons located outside the United States has operated lawfully within its statutory limitations.

On June 25, 2014, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder announced that the Obama Administration is looking to pass legislation that would provide EU citizens with a right to judicial redress in U.S. courts if their personal information that was shared for law enforcement purposes is later intentionally or wilfully disclosed. The announcement was made during the EU-U.S. Ministerial Meeting on Justice and Home Affairs in Athens, Greece, which was co-chaired by the Attorney General and aimed to advance EU-U.S. cooperation in efforts to stop transnational crime and terrorism. The announcement also relates to the ongoing negotiations of the new “umbrella” EU-U.S. Data Protection and Privacy Agreement (“DPPA”).

On June 25, 2014, the United States Supreme Court issued a unanimous opinion in Riley v. California, holding 9-0 that law enforcement personnel cannot search detained suspects’ cell phones without a warrant. Writing for the Court, Chief Justice John Roberts found that the practice of searching cell phones implicates “substantially greater” individual privacy interests than other physical objects that may be found on an arrestee and deserves heightened protections. Roberts stated:

On June 23, 2014, the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) announced a resolution agreement and $800,000 settlement with Parkview Health System, Inc. (“Parkview”) following a complaint involving patient medical records that were dumped by Parkview employees and left unattended on a physician’s driveway.

On June 2, 2014, the U.S. Department of Justice announced a U.S.-led multinational effort to disrupt the “Gameover Zeus” botnet and the malware known as “Cryptolocker.” The DOJ also unsealed charges filed in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Omaha, Nebraska against an administrator of Gameover Zeus.

On June 4, 2014, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) testified before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology and the Law on GAO’s findings regarding (1) companies’ use and sharing of consumer location data, (2) privacy risks associated with the collection of location data, and (3) actions taken by certain companies and federal agencies to protect the privacy of location data. GAO’s testimony relates to its 2012 and 2013 reports that examined the collection of location data by certain mobile industry companies and in-car navigation providers.

On May 27, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission announced the release of a new report entitled Data Brokers: A Call for Transparency and Accountability, detailing the findings of an FTC study of nine data brokers, representing a cross-section of the industry. The Report concludes that the data broker industry needs greater transparency and recommends that Congress consider enacting legislation that would make data brokers’ practices more visible and give consumers more control over the collection and sharing of their personal information.

On May 23, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission announced that the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection sent a letter to the court overseeing the bankruptcy proceedings for ConnectEDU Inc. (“ConnectEDU”), an education technology company, warning that the proposed sale of the company’s assets raises privacy concerns. ConnectEDU’s assets include personal information collected from students, high schools and community colleges in connection with the company’s website and affiliated services.

On May 22, 2014, the United States House of Representatives passed H.R. 3361, a bill aimed at limiting the federal government’s ability to collect bulk phone records and increasing transparency regarding decisions by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (“FISC”). The bill was approved by a vote of 323-121 by majorities of both Democrat and Republican members of the United States House of Representatives. It now moves to the Senate where it is likely to pass.

On May 19, 2014, the Federal Communications Commission announced that Sprint Corporation agreed to pay $7.5 million to settle an FCC Enforcement Bureau investigation stemming from allegations that the company failed to honor consumers’ requests to opt out of telemarketing calls and texts. Sprint also agreed to implement a two-year plan to help ensure future compliance with Do-Not-Call registry rules.

On May 12, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it has approved final consent orders with two companies that marketed genetically customized nutrition supplements. In addition to charges that the companies’ claims regarding the effectiveness of their products were not sufficiently substantiated, the settlements also allege that the companies misrepresented their privacy and security practices. The two companies, Gene Link, Inc. (“Gene Link”) and foru™ International Corp. (“foru” – a former subsidiary of Gene Link), represented in their privacy policy that they had “taken every precaution to create a process that allows individuals to maintain the highest level of privacy” and that the companies’ third party service providers are “contractually obligated to maintain the confidentiality and security of the Personal Customer Information and are restricted from using such information in any way not expressly authorized” by the companies.

As reported in the Hunton Employment & Labor Perspectives Blog:

On April 9, 2014, the Sixth Circuit of Appeals not only affirmed summary judgment in EEOC v. Kaplan Higher Education Corp., et al. but also chastised the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) for applying a flawed methodology in its attempts to prove that using credit checks as a pre-employment screen had an unlawful disparate impact against African-American applicants.

On May 9, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission announced a settlement with clothing manufacturer American Apparel related to charges that the company falsely claimed to comply with the U.S.-EU Safe Harbor Framework. According to the FTC’s complaint, the company violated Section 5 of the FTC Act by deceptively representing, through statements in its privacy policy, that it held a current Safe Harbor certification even though it had allowed the certification to expire.

On May 8, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission announced a proposed settlement with Snapchat, Inc. (“Snapchat”) stemming from allegations that the company’s privacy policy misrepresented its privacy and security practices, including how the Snapchat mobile app worked. Snapchat’s app supposedly allowed users to send and receive photo and video messages known as “snaps” that would “disappear forever” after a certain time period. The FTC alleged that, in fact, it was possible for recipients to save snaps indefinitely, regardless of the sender-designated expiration time.

On May 7, 2014, the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) announced that NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital (“NYP”) and Columbia University (“CU”) agreed to collectively pay $4.8 million in the largest HIPAA settlement to date, to settle charges that they potentially violated the HIPAA Privacy and Security Rules.

On May 1, 2014, the White House released a report examining how Big Data is affecting government, society and commerce. In addition to questioning longstanding tenets of privacy legislation, such as notice and consent, the report recommends (1) passing national data breach legislation, (2) revising the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (“ECPA”), and (3) advancing the Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights.

On April 25, 2014, a judge in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York ruled that Microsoft must release user data to U.S. law enforcement when issued a search warrant, even if the data is stored outside of the U.S.

On April 23, 2014, the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) announced settlements with two health care companies stemming from allegations of inadequate information security practices in the wake of investigations involving stolen laptop computers. Concentra Health Services (“Concentra”) and QCA Health Plan Inc. (“QCA”) will collectively pay nearly $2 million to settle the claims.

On April 9, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission announced settlements with two data brokers, Instant Checkmate, Inc. (“Instant Checkmate”) and InfoTrack Information Services, Inc. (“InfoTrack”), which sell public record information about consumers. The settlements stem from allegations that Instant Checkmate and InfoTrack violated various provisions of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”). According to the press release, the FTC asserts that the companies violated the FCRA by “providing reports about consumers to users such as prospective employers and landlords without taking reasonable steps to make sure that they were accurate, or without making sure their users had a permissible reason to have them.”

On April 10, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission announced that the Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection had notified Facebook and WhatsApp Inc., reminding both companies of their obligation to honor privacy statements made to consumers in connection with Facebook’s proposed acquisition of WhatsApp.

On April 7, 2014, the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey issued an opinion in Federal Trade Commission v. Wyndham Worldwide Corporation, allowing the FTC to proceed with its case against the company. Wyndham had argued that the FTC lacks the authority to regulate data security under Section 5 of the FTC Act. The judge rejected Wyndham’s challenge, ruling that the FTC can charge Wyndham with unfair data security practices. The case will continue to be litigated on the issue of whether Wyndham’s data security practices constituted a violation of Section 5.

As reported in the Hunton Employment & Labor Perspectives Blog, on March 10, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued joint guidance regarding the use of background checks in the employment context. The agencies issued two guidance documents: Background Checks: What Employers Need to Know (which advises employers on their existing legal obligations under both the Fair Credit Reporting Act and federal non-discrimination laws) and Background Checks: What Job Applicants and Employees Should Know (which informs job applicants ...

On March 28, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission announced proposed settlements with Fandango and Credit Karma stemming from allegations that the companies misrepresented the security of their mobile apps and failed to secure consumers’ sensitive personal information transmitted using their mobile apps.

The Federal Trade Commission recently acted on three industry proposals in accordance with the new Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule (the “COPPA Rule”) that came into effect July 1, 2013. Specifically, the FTC determined that it was unnecessary to rule on a proposed parental consent mechanism, approved a proposed “safe harbor” program and is seeking public comment on a separate proposed “safe harbor” program.

On March 7, 2014, the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) announced a resolution agreement and $215,000 settlement with Skagit County, Washington, following a security breach that affected approximately 1,600 individuals.

On February 11, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission announced a proposed settlement with Fantage.com stemming from allegations that the company made statements in its privacy policy that deceptively claimed that Fantage.com was complying with the U.S.-EU Safe Harbor Framework.

On January 31, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission announced a settlement with GMR Transcription Services, Inc. (“GMR”) stemming from allegations that GMR’s failure to provide reasonable security allowed certain patients’ medical transcripts to be exposed to the public on the Internet. The FTC issued an accompanying press release stating it was the FTC’s 50th data security settlement.

On January 29, 2014, the National Security Agency (“NSA”) announced that Rebecca Richards has been appointed to serve as the NSA’s new Civil Liberties and Privacy Officer. Ms. Richards, who previously worked as the Senior Director for Privacy Compliance at the Department of Homeland Security, will advise the NSA Director on civil liberties and privacy issues and implement reforms in those areas.

On January 23, 2014, the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (“PCLOB”) released a report (the “Report”) concluding that the National Security Agency (“NSA”) does not have a valid legal basis for its bulk telephone records collection program. The NSA’s bulk collection of consumer telephone records has been under increased scrutiny since Edward Snowden leaked information about the program in June 2013, and recently has faced legal challenges. According to the Report, the NSA’s program exceeded its statutory parameters.

On January 21, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission announced settlements with twelve companies that allegedly falsely claimed that they complied with the U.S.-EU Safe Harbor Framework. The settlements stem from allegations that the companies violated Section 5 of the FTC Act by falsely representing that they held current Safe Harbor certifications despite having allowed their certifications to expire. The companies involved represent a variety of industries, ranging from technology and accounting to consumer products and National Football League teams.