By Ulrich Wuermeling On January 10, 2017, the European Commission proposed a new ePrivacy Regulation (Proposal). Compared to the internal draft that was leaked in December, the official Proposal has been substantially modified. However, the general approach taken by the European Commission has not changed. The Proposal includes provisions with a broad scope of application covering … Continue Reading
By Ulrich Wuermeling An internal Commission draft of a new ePrivacy Regulation (Draft) has been leaked to the public. The Commission plans to propose it in early 2017, but the content of the Draft does not seem near a final proposal. It is either older or still needs some time to be finalized. The Draft … Continue Reading
By Gail Crawford and Ulrich Wuermeling On October 19, 2016, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) issued a ruling on the question of whether IP addresses constitute personal data. The ruling has direct implications on the general question of when data can be regarded as anonymous and, thus, fall outside the scope of data … Continue Reading
On July 10, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) released the text of a Declaratory Ruling and Order, initially adopted on June 18, that provides various clarifications regarding the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 (“TCPA”) and the FCC’s existing rules. The proceeding that led to the Order attracted widespread attention and was the result of nearly … Continue Reading
By Alexander Stout and Matthew T. Murchison on Posted in Privacy
June is proving to be a very active month for the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in construing the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, including what sorts of consumer interactions are sufficient to meet the requirements for consent to receive marketing or other messages. This post reports on an extraordinary warning letter issued to PayPal, criticizing … Continue Reading
By Matthew Murchison & Matthew Brill By all accounts, the number of class action lawsuits brought under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act against companies communicating by telephone, text, and fax has exploded in recent years. These lawsuits—which rely on the private right of action at 47 U.S.C. § 227(b)(3) for violations of the statutory prohibitions … Continue Reading
Guest Blogger Jillian Chia from Skrine, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia & Gail Crawford With the Malaysian Personal Data Protection Act 2013 (“PDPA”) having come into force on 15 November 2013, Jillian Chia, Senior Associate at Skrine, provides an overview of the salient provisions in the Regulations and Orders. She notes that that there is a grace period for … Continue Reading
By Kevin Boyle and Aryeh Richmond Here is a reminder that the Federal Trade Commission’s revisions to its Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule become effective on July 1. If you haven’t already, now is the time to make sure you have revisions to meet the rule in place as FTC and state attorney general inquiries … Continue Reading
The Office of Hong Kong’s Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (PCPD) recently announced the results of compliance checks on the collection of “cookies” by local banks in response to earlier media reports and a survey by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA). According to media reports from September 2010, some local banks in Hong Kong … Continue Reading
Focus on Mobile App Transparency Pursuant to the Obama Administration’s blueprint for consumer privacy released in February (and in accord with a request for comments published in March), the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has issued a notice setting July 12, 2012, as the date for the first meeting in its privacy multistakeholder process. Mobile app … Continue Reading
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) is challenging national legislators in the European Union who introduced privacy laws stricter than those provided for by the European Data Protection Directive (95/46/EC). In a decision issued on November 24, 2011, the ECJ declared a provision in the Spanish Organic Law 15/1999 invalid because it imposes additional requirements for … Continue Reading
European Union Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding has confirmed that we can expect to see a draft of the eagerly awaited new Data Privacy Directive in January. The new rules are likely to significantly strengthen the rights of individuals. According to a press release issued jointly last week by Reding and Germany’s Federal Minister for Consumer Protection, Isle … Continue Reading
In the run up to today’s deadline for EEA Member States to implement the EU’s revised Privacy and Electronic Communications Directive, including its new rules requiring consent to the use of cookies, the UK Department of Culture, Media and Sport (the DCMS) and the UK’s privacy regulator, the ICO, have released further guidance for businesses, … Continue Reading
Last week we posted about the fast approaching May 26 deadline for member state implementation of the EU’s revised Privacy and Electronic Communications Directive concerning cookies on web sites. We noted the relative absence of final (if any) guidance from EU jurisdictions on the approach to be taken in their respective implementations. On Monday, the UK’s privacy regulator, the Information … Continue Reading
Google has consented to the entry of a proposed Agreement Containing Consent Order with the US Federal Trade Commission, subjecting the company to sweeping government oversight of its privacy disclosure and product development and release practices, nominally arising out of the roll-out of its Buzz product in February 2010. The auditing and reporting requirements are … Continue Reading
The First Chamber of the German Federal Supreme Court decided on the permissibility of outbound advertising calls on the basis of a so-called “double-opt-in” (judgement dated February 10, 2011 – I ZR 164/09 – Telefonaktion II). The full reasoning of the decision has not been published yet. But the press release already gives important clues … Continue Reading
