On February 4, 2021, the House Energy and Commerce’s Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Commerce held a hearing entitled, “Safeguarding American Consumers: Fighting Scams and Fraud During the Pandemic.” The hearing focused on the FTC’s ability to obtain equitable monetary relief under Section 13(b) of the FTC Act – an issue that is currently being … Continue Reading
On 9 April 2019, the European Data Protection Board (“EDPB”) adopted new guidelines “on the processing of personal data under Article 6(1)(b) GDPR in the context of the provision of online services to data subjects.” In general, the GDPR requires that processing of personal data be justified under a legal basis in Article 6 GDPR. … Continue Reading
By Mark Young and Tom Jackson On February 20, 2015, the Information Commissioner’s Office (“ICO”) fined Staysure.co.uk Ltd (“Staysure”), an online travel insurer, £175,000 for failing to protect its customers’ personal data. In addition to technical vulnerabilities, the ICO took into account Staysure’s lack of security policies and practices when levying the fine. In short, … Continue Reading
Earlier this week, the Huffington Post’s Jennifer Kerr reported on the practice of tracking of merchandise returns by retailers. According to the article, some retailers track merchandise returns to identify “chronic returners or gangs of thieves trying to make off with high-end products that are returned later for store credit.” The article notes that many … Continue Reading
Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm has signed a legislative measure [PDF] that amends the state’s 2004 Identity Theft Protection Act (the “ITPA”). The measure, which was enacted to combat phishing scams and other online fraud, amends the ITPA in several significant respects: The new legislation makes it unlawful to gather personally identifying information through e-mail, a website, … Continue Reading
