Questions of Authority – who will be the federal regulatory cop on the privacy beat? FTC? FCC? Privacy, Data Security Jurisdiction Questions to the Forefront in 2015 Written by Christopher Harvie As privacy and data security gain more visibility among policy-makers, questions of federal agency authority and jurisdiction are also gaining a higher profile. Since… Continue Reading
Tag Archives: FTC
FTC on COPPA: No Delay
Posted in Children, Federal Trade Commission, Privacy RegulationThis afternoon, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) unanimously rejected requests from industry organizations to delay the July 1 date for compliance with the amendments to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). In its response letter, the Commission noted that the updated rule has been in the works for three years and the July… Continue Reading
War of Words Regarding Implementation of Amendments to COPPA – UPDATE
Posted in Children, Federal Trade Commission, Privacy RegulationUPDATE — The Federal Trade Commission has published its promised COPPA FAQs here. Volley #1 – Trade Associations to FTC: Please Delay! The long-awaited amendments to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) have been the subject of much discussion and debate. Last week, Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairwoman Edith Ramirez received letters… Continue Reading
Activity at the Federal Trade Commission
Posted in Federal Trade Commission, Privacy Litigation, Privacy RegulationWritten by Amy Malone There is much going on at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) these days, particularly in the privacy arena. In addition to the settlements discussed below, today the White House confirmed that President Obama will nominate Edith Ramirez as Chair of the FTC, replacing outgoing Chairman Jon Leibowitz. Path Settlement: Path, a… Continue Reading
#3 in our 2013 Issues Series: Privacy of Mobile Applications
Posted in Data Compliance & Security, Privacy Litigation, Privacy RegulationAs we continue our “new year, new look” series into important privacy issues for 2013, we boldly predict: Regulatory Scrutiny of Data Collection and Use Practices of Mobile Apps Will Increase in 2013 Mobile apps are becoming a ubiquitous part of the everyday technology experience. But, consumer apprehension over data collection and their personal privacy… Continue Reading
Nickelodeon Target of Privacy Complaint; Final COPPA Amendments to be Released Tomorrow
Posted in Children, Privacy RegulationWritten by Amy Malone The Center for Digital Democracy (CDD) filed a complaint yesterday asking the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to investigate violations of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) by Nickelodeon and mobile app-maker PlayFirst. The CDD alleges that the mobile game SpongeBob Diner Dash collects personal information about children, including full names,… Continue Reading
Wyndham Motion Puts the FTC on the Defensive
Posted in Data Breach, Federal Trade CommissionWritten by Adam Veness Wyndham Hotel & Resorts LLC (“Wyndham”) has filed a Motion to Dismiss the Federal Trade Commission’s (the “FTC”) Complaint against it, which alleges that Wyndham committed unfair and deceptive acts related to three data security breaches that Wyndham has suffered since 2008. More information about the FTC’s Complaint can be seen… Continue Reading
Federal Trade Commission Sends Strong Message with $22.5 Million Google Settlement
Posted in Federal Trade CommissionWritten by Amy Malone The FTC has finally released details of their settlement with Google, including the hefty price tag of $22.5 million, the highest fine ever slapped on a violator of an FTC consent order. The Internet giant was charged with breaking the terms of the consent order they entered into last year by misrepresenting… Continue Reading
FTC Issues Long-Awaited Privacy Report
Posted in Federal Trade Commission, Legislation, Online Advertising, Privacy RegulationWritten by Adam Veness Earlier today, the FTC held a press conference and issued a final report setting forth best practices for businesses to protect American consumers and to provide consumers with greater control over the collection and use of their data. You can find the full report here: Final Commission Report on Protecting Consumer… Continue Reading
President Obama: “American consumers can’t wait any longer….”
Posted in Data Compliance & Security, Federal Trade Commission, Legislation, Online Advertising, Privacy RegulationAt the White House today, President Obama unveiled his administration’s framework for new privacy regulations and the long-awaited white paper entitled “Consumer Data Privacy in a Networked World: A Framework for Protecting Privacy and Promoting Innovation in the Global Digital Economy.” This follows up on the Department of Commerce “green paper” issued well over a year… Continue Reading
FCC Adopts Rules Requiring Written Consent for Telemarketing “Robocalls”
Posted in Privacy Regulation, UncategorizedWritten by Ernie Cooper The Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) has adopted new rules that require companies to obtain prior express written consent from consumers before calling them with prerecorded telemarketing “robocalls.” For the most part, the new robocall rules adopted by the FCC simply mirror similar rules adopted by the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) in… Continue Reading
Broken Privacy Promises from Upromise? FTC Settlement and Key Takeaways (Update)
Posted in Data Compliance & Security, Federal Trade CommissionWritten by Jake Romero According to the Federal Trade Commission, the most remarkable aspect of Upromise, an online college savings program, was not how much its users saved. Rather, it was how much they were giving away. The FTC has announced settlement regarding a complaint it had filed against Upromise, Inc. alleging that the corporation… Continue Reading
FTC: Facebook “Deceived” Consumers by Failing to Keep Privacy Promises
Posted in Data Compliance & Security, Legislation“Facebook is obligated to keep the promises about privacy that it makes to its hundreds of millions of users” – Federal Trade Commission Chairman Jon Leibowitz The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced the long-rumored proposed consent decree with Facebook, settling allegations in a complaint that Facebook violated Section 5 of the FTC Act by failing to live… Continue Reading
Breaking News — Wall Street Journal: Facebook Close to Settlement with the Federal Trade Commission
Posted in Privacy Regulation, UncategorizedUpdate: Post from Daily Online Examiner blog. If you’re a power Facebook user, you are likely tired of the constant changes to privacy settings. At last count, the most recent change was the 13th. This report may make your day. The Wall Street Journal reports this afternoon (registration required) that Facebook is finalizing a proposed settlement… Continue Reading
FTC Announces $1.8 Million Settlement for Violation of Fair Credit Reporting Act
Posted in UncategorizedWritten by Stu Eaton In a settlement announced by the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) on June 27, 2011, Teletrack, Inc. agreed to pay $1.8 million to settle FTC charges that it violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) by selling consumer reports to marketers without a “permissible purpose.” Teletrack sells credit reports and other services… Continue Reading
Privacy and Security Bits and Bytes
Posted in UncategorizedOur Friday feature is back! FTC Imposes Largest Civil Penalty Ever for Violation of Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) – Magic Kingdom Subsidiary Pays Up The Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission, Jon Leibowitz, said: It’s the law, it’s the right thing to do, and, as today’s settlement demonstrates, violating COPPA will not come… Continue Reading
Review of Telecom/Media Industry Comments to FTC’s Privacy Framework
Posted in UncategorizedWritten by Stu Eaton Our ongoing effort to summarize the comments (see post here) filed in response to the FTC’s Privacy Framework continues this week as we focus on the Telecommunications and Media industry. The bulk of the comments came from the telecommunications industry, including key players such as AT&T, Verizon, the National Cable and… Continue Reading
FTC Privacy Framework: Comments from the Retail/Promotion/Advertising Industry
Posted in UncategorizedWritten by Stu Eaton In our continuing effort to summarize the more than 400 comments posted in response to the FTC’s Privacy Framework, we have organized our summaries into the following five industry groups: Retail/Promotion/Advertising; Software/Technology; Telecommunications/Media; Privacy Advocates/Government; and Financial Services/General Business. This week we reviewed the comments posted by companies and trade groups… Continue Reading
Federal Trade Commission receives large number of public comments
Posted in UncategorizedAttorneys General of 14 states ask FTC not to reduce state privacy powers in any privacy framework or regulations. California did not participate.
If you don’t want privacy regulation — FTC advises industry to “move quickly”
Posted in Data Compliance & Security, Legislation, Online AdvertisingThe Federal Trade Commission’s public comment period on its preliminary staff report, Protecting Consumer Privacy in an Era of Rapid Change: A Proposed Framework for Businesses and Policymakers, has closed. The FTC received over 300 comments during the extended comment period, including several states. It is looking more likely that some form of privacy regulation… Continue Reading
FTC Offers Tips for Dealing with Medical Identity Theft
Posted in UncategorizedWritten by Dianne Bourque The Federal Trade Commission has released a series of medical identity theft FAQs for health care providers and health plans. The FAQs contain resources for patients and a variety of practical tips that are intended to help health care providers and insurers minimize risk to patients and assist those who become victims… Continue Reading
FTC Extends Comment Period – UPDATED
Posted in Data Compliance & Security, Online AdvertisingThe Federal Trade Commission has extended the public comment period on its December 1, 2010 report — FTC Privacy Report. The FTC press release says that, in light of the complex issues raised by the report, a number of organizations have requested an extension of the original January 31, 2011 deadline. Stakeholders now have until February 18,… Continue Reading
Comparison of Commerce Department and Federal Trade Commission Privacy Proposals
Posted in UncategorizedJust before the end of 2010, both the Commerce Department (here) and the Federal Trade Commission (here) released their agencies’ respective proposals for privacy frameworks in the United States. The reports make similar proposals in some respects, but in others are quite different. We have prepared a comparison report on both. (Thanks to Mintz Levin… Continue Reading
Questions Asked by the FTC in the Privacy Report – Part II
Posted in UncategorizedIn last week’s Privacy Report , the Federal Trade Commission posed a series of questions, soliciting comment and discussion from stakeholders to better inform its final report on the subject, due to be issued mid-2011. We reviewed some of the questions in our December 2 post. Here are some of the other questions — parties with… Continue Reading
