The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is seeking public comment on a petition by Sears Holding Management requesting that the FTC reopen and modify a 2009 FTC order settling charges that Sears failed to disclose adequately
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Northern District of California Drops FTC Unfairness Claim Against D-Link Systems
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California recently issued a mixed ruling on D-Link Systems’ motion to dismiss in FTC v. D-Link Sys., Inc.1 D-Link sells routers and Internet protocol (IP) cameras that it markets as having good data security, including “the latest wireless security features to help prevent unauthorized access” and “the best possible encryption.”2 The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed a complaint against D-Link, alleging that the company’s products were in fact subject to “widely known and reasonably foreseeable risks of unauthorized access,” and that, among other things, D-Link failed to deploy “free software, available since at least 2008, to secure users’ mobile app login credentials.”3 The complaint alleges five claims for deceptive marketing practices and one count for unfair practices under Section 5 of the FTC Act.
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The European Start-Up’s Guide to U.S. Data Privacy
Complying with UK and EU data privacy regulations often presents a significant challenge for start-ups based in those regions. UK and EU start-ups expanding to the U.S. similarly need to be aware of U.S. data
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Lenovo Settles FTC Charges Regarding Pre-Installed Software That Compromised Consumers’ Cybersecurity and Privacy
On September 5, 2017, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that it and 32 state attorneys general had settled charges with Lenovo regarding the company’s practice of pre-loading software on its laptops that compromised consumers’
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Key New Takeaways from Uber’s Privacy and Data Security Settlement with the FTC
On August 15, 2017, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that it had reached an agreement with Uber Technologies to settle allegations that the ride-sharing company had deceived consumers by failing to live up to its privacy and data security promises.1 Specifically, the FTC levied two deception counts against Uber: (1) that the company had failed to consistently monitor and audit internal access to consumers’ personal information, despite public promises to do so; and (2) that the company had failed to provide reasonable security for consumers’ personal information stored in its databases, despite its security promises. Under the resulting proposed consent order, Uber will be prohibited from misrepresenting how it monitors or audits internal access to consumers’ personal information and how it protects and secures that data. Uber will also be required to implement a comprehensive privacy program that will be subject to independent biennial audits for the next 20 years, and will need to comply with the standard set of consent order recordkeeping and compliance reporting and monitoring requirements.
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WSGR Alert: FTC Brings First Enforcement Actions Against Kids Apps Using Persistent Identifiers for Targeted Advertising
On December 17, 2015, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced its first Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) enforcement actions challenging the use of persistent identifiers to engage in targeted advertising to children. The FTC
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