As we predicted in our post late last month, Google’s YouTube Kids app has attracted more than just the “curious little minds” Google was hoping for. Yesterday, a group of privacy and children’s rights advocates (including the Center for Digital Democracy and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry) asked the Federal Trade Commission… Continue Reading
Tag Archives: Google
The YouTube Kids app is here! Now what?
Posted in ChildrenGoogle made good on the rumors and the company’s subsequent promise last December to create a family-friendly version of its popular YouTube service with its launch on Monday of the YouTube Kids app. Available on both the App Store and Google Play free of cost and only in the United States, the YouTube Kids app is described by Google as… Continue Reading
Who’s your role model for EU privacy notices? The latest Google Undertaking
Posted in European Union, Mobile Privacy, Online Advertising, UncategorizedWhen small and mid-size companies start expanding their apps or web presence into Europe, they need to start thinking about EU data protection laws. It’s tempting to take a look at what one or two of the “big guys” do about EU data protection compliance and think that whatever the big guys do in Europe… Continue Reading
Viacom and Google Win Important Dismissal in Online Tracking Class Action
Posted in Class Action LitigationLast week the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey dismissed, with prejudice, class action claims against Google and Viacom concerning targeted advertising and the online tracking of children through cookies. Perhaps surprisingly, the claims did not involve allegations that the parties violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). The suit… Continue Reading
Do you want your under 13 kid to have a Gmail or YouTube account? Google does…..
Posted in ChildrenWritten by Julia Siripurapu, CIPP/US According to recent media reports, Google is allegedly designing a Google account for children under 13 which would permit children in this age group to officially create their own Gmail account and to access a kid-friendly version of YouTube. Google currently prohibits children 12 and under from creating a Google… Continue Reading
My company isn’t a search engine. Why should I care about Google Spain?
Posted in Data Breach, Data Compliance & Security, EU Data Protection Regulation, European Court of Justice, European Union, Legislation, Privacy Litigation, Privacy RegulationWritten by Susan Foster, Solicitor England & Wales/Admitted in California (LONDON) Google – along with the rest of us – is still considering the implications of the European Court of Justice’s May 13, 2014 decision that Google must remove links to a newspaper article containing properly published information about a Spanish individual on the basis… Continue Reading
Unauthorized Children’s In-App Purchases Round Two: Google Faces Class Action
Posted in Children, Class Action LitigationWritten by Julia Siripurapu, CIPP/US Just two months after Apple’s settlement with the FTC over lax parental controls over children’s in-app purchases (see our prior blog post), Google takes the spotlight with claims of unauthorized children’s in-app purchases in the Google Play Store! This time, it’s not an FTC action, but a class action. The… Continue Reading
Google pays BIG to state Attorney Generals for Improper Consumer Tracking
Posted in Class Action Litigation, Data Compliance & Security, Federal Trade Commission, Privacy Litigation, Privacy RegulationWritten by Julia Siripurapu Earlier this month, Google, Inc. (“Google” or “Company”) entered into an agreement with the Attorney Generals of 37 states and the District of Columbia, settling allegations of violation of the participating states’ consumer protection or applicable computer abuse statutes (the “Settlement Agreement”). Here’s what got the tech giant in trouble: Google… Continue Reading
Senator Markey Back in the Privacy Hunt: Google’s New Terms of Service Prompt Letter to FTC
Posted in Federal Trade Commission, Online Advertising, Privacy RegulationWritten by Adam Veness Google has recently announced changes to its terms of service that will allow Google to incorporate its users’ photos, comments and names in advertisements. This new policy will go into effect on November 11th. Seemingly always quick to action when privacy issues are implicated, Senator Edward J. Markey (D-MA) has already… Continue Reading
Privacy Monday – September 30, 2013 – Here’s the New Mintz Matrix
Posted in Data Breach, Data Breach Notification, Data Compliance & Security, Privacy Monday, Privacy RegulationAs we all ponder the potential for the first U.S. government shut down in 18 years, here are some Monday privacy tidbits to change the subject a bit. September Mintz Matrix As our readers know, we maintain a summary of the US state data breach notification laws, which we refer to as the “Mintz Matrix.” … Continue Reading
Google Must Face Most Claims in Keyword Wiretap Class Action
Posted in Class Action Litigation, Privacy LitigationWritten by Jake Romero If you were on Google’s home page yesterday at the office, you probably spent more time than you care to admit playing the “help the letter ‘g’ hit the piñata” game that Google created for its 15th birthday. For Google, that might be a welcome distraction from very bad news it received… Continue Reading
EU versus Google: A test case for the viability of a global data protection policy?
Posted in European Union, Privacy RegulationWritten by Susan Foster, Solicitor England & Wales/Admitted in California (LONDON) The EU has escalated its existing investigation of Google’s global privacy policy, a policy covering all of Google’s services that was introduced by Google last year. Up until April 3, the French data protection authority, CNIL, had effectively been tasked with engaging with Google… Continue Reading
Google: Better to Seek Forgiveness Than Permission?
Posted in Class Action Litigation, Privacy LitigationWritten by Amy Malone For years, Google has been blazing trails in the technology world and along the way they have been caught in a few snares. The latest entanglement wrapped up this week as the company settled a two-year investigation led by an executive committee that represents 38 states and the District of Columbia… Continue Reading
“Fair, Adequate and Reasonable”: Federal Judge Approves the FTC’s $22.5 Million Settlement with Google
Posted in Class Action Litigation, Federal Trade CommissionWritten by Jake Romero As previously reported in this blog , Google, Inc. agreed to pay $22.5 Million to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that it misrepresented its data collection practices to users of Apple, Inc.’s Safari Internet browser . That settlement has now been approved by U.S. District Judge Susan Illston, following a challenge brought… 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
Mixed Decision on Motion to Dismiss Google Street View Class Action Augurs Continuing Difficulty in Maintaining Privacy Class Actions
Posted in UncategorizedUPDATE — Google has filed an appeal to the 9th Circuit to review this lower court decision “before forcing to proceed with protracted litigation” on the federal wiretapping case. Good article by David Kravets of Wired here Written by Kevin McGinty Regular readers of this blog will be familiar with my view that difficulty in proving… Continue Reading
Apple: Update on Lawmaker Interest in Mobile Device Tracking
Posted in UncategorizedWritten by Julie Babayan An update of our continuing posts (here and here) on the grilling that Apple and Google are getting over collection of location information by mobile devices: Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) has added his voice to those of other lawmakers like Congressman Ed Markey (D-MA) who are concerned over reports… Continue Reading
Lawmakers Scrutinize Mobile Phone Location Tracking Practices
Posted in UncategorizedWritten by Julie Babayan Lawmakers including Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy Chairman Al Franken (D-MN) and House Bi-Partisan Privacy Caucus Co-Chairman Ed Markey (D-MA) are scrutinizing Apple Inc.’s and Google Inc.’s practices of tracking users’ location information through their mobile phones. Franken will preside over a hearing next month entitled “Protecting Mobile Privacy: Your Smartphones,… 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
Analysis of Proposed HHS Regulations Implementing HITECH Act
Posted in LegislationAs promised last week in an earlier post, here is our first Mintz Levin client advisory analyzing the 234 pages of regulations issued on Thursday by the Department of Health and Human Services. Thanks to colleagues Alden Bianchi, Dianne Bourque and Stephen Bentfield. The regulations are slated to be published in the Federal Register tomorrow,… Continue Reading
The Google Payload Data Fallout Continues
Posted in Data BreachWritten by Jillian Collins Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal says he will lead a multistate investigation into Google Street View cars’ unauthorized collection of personal data from WiFi networks. The Connecticut AG said he expects a significant number of states to participate. More than 30 states participated in a recent conference call regarding the Connecticut… Continue Reading
Congressmen Question Google on Wi-Fi
Posted in Data BreachToday, Congressmen Joe Barton (R-TX), Edward Markey (D-MA), and Henry Waxman (D-CA)wrote to Google Chairman and CEO Eric Schmidt seeking answers to the company’s collection of private information over Wi-Fi networks. “We are concerned that Google did not disclose until long after the fact that consumers’ Internet use was being recorded, analyzed and perhaps profiled…. Continue Reading
“Stunning”/ “Shear Madness” – Reaction to Google Convictions
Posted in Data BreachThe reactions are coming in fast and furious to yesterday’s conviction of three Google executives in an Italian court. Linked here are just a few of the more than 1,000 media stories on the decision so far. Google privacy convictions in Italy spark outrageLarger Threat Is Seen in Google Case – NYTimes.comConviction of Google Execs… Continue Reading
BREAKING NEWS: Google Executives Convicted on Privacy Charges in Italy
Posted in Data BreachIn the first case of its kind, an Italian judge today convicted three Google executives on privacy violations in Milan court. Global Privacy Counsel Peter Fleischer, Chief Legal Officer David Drummond, and another executive were found guilty of failing to comply with Italian privacy code in allowing a disparaging video to be posted online. A… Continue Reading
