Cybersecurity & Privacy

  • August 30, 2024

    Period Tracker App Users Seek Class Cert. In Data-Selling Suit

    Users of the menstrual cycle tracking app Flo Health Inc. are seeking class certification in their suit against Flo, Google and Meta, telling a California federal judge the proposed class would include millions of users whose personal health information was sold to the ad giants without consent.

  • August 30, 2024

    Conn. Mayor Says Scam Cost Town $208K, Finance Chief Out

    The mayor of a Connecticut town has announced that it was the victim of a "social engineering scam" that cost it about $208,000, leading to the resignation of the town's finance director, although it has since recouped half the stolen funds.

  • August 30, 2024

    FTX Exec Drops Bid To Undo Plea Amid Partner's Indictment

    Former FTX executive Ryan Salame is no longer seeking to vacate his guilty plea that he says Manhattan federal prosecutors induced with a false promise to halt a campaign finance probe into his partner Michelle Bond, though his claims that they broke their word will still be litigated before two different judges.

  • August 30, 2024

    Crypto Exchanges Illegally Took Facial Scans, Suits Say

    Two cryptocurrency exchanges have been hit with proposed class actions in Illinois federal court alleging they unlawfully collected, stored, and disclosed users' facial geometry scans by making new customers go through a mandatory verification process in violation of Illinois' Biometric Information Privacy Act.

  • August 30, 2024

    Medical Tech Co. Exits MOVEit Hack MDL For $2.8M

    Medical billing software firm Arietis Health LLC has agreed to pay $2.8 million to settle out of a multidistrict litigation brought by a class of victims of a 2023 data breach involving Progress Software's MOVEit file transfer tool.

  • August 29, 2024

    Ga. Health System Shakes Facebook Data Sharing Row

    A Georgia federal judge has tossed a putative class action accusing Piedmont Healthcare Inc. of unlawfully sharing confidential health information with Facebook, finding that the plaintiffs failed to allege actual damages and that the "weight of authority" in similar online tracking cases supported the provider's contention that there was no privacy intrusion. 

  • August 29, 2024

    PI Says He Didn't Publish Trade Secrets In Hacking Suit

    A North Carolina private investigator is doubling down on his bid to defeat what's left of aviation tycoon Farhad Azima's lawsuit accusing him of taking part in an international hacking conspiracy.

  • August 29, 2024

    Ancestry.com Beats Claims It Used Yearbook Photos In Ads

    Ancestry.com has snagged a quick win from an Ohio federal judge in a proposed class action claiming the genealogy website uses people's yearbook records without their consent to market its services with three unlawful advertising techniques.

  • August 29, 2024

    DLA Piper Steers Tech-Focused SPAC GigCapital's Latest IPO

    GigCapital7 Corp., the latest special-purpose acquisition company led by technology-focused entrepreneur Avi Katz, began trading Thursday after completing a downsized initial public offering that raised $200 million, represented by DLA Piper and underwriters' counsel Lucosky Brookman LLP.

  • August 29, 2024

    HHS Withdraws Appeal In Hospital Web-Tracking Clash

    The Biden administration on Thursday abandoned its appeal of a federal court decision that knocked down new guidance restricting how hospitals can use web-tracking tools, handing the American Hospital Association a victory in a closely watched case.

  • August 29, 2024

    Houston Law Firm Hit With 2nd Data Breach Suit

    Houston personal injury firm Fleming Nolen & Jez has been hit with another proposed class action over a February 2023 data breach that exposed clients' personal and health information.

  • August 29, 2024

    Data Breach Victims Get Initial Green Light For $1.5M Deal

    A proposed class of policyholders, employees and stakeholders has received an initial nod of approval from a federal judge in North Carolina on its $1.5 million settlement with a construction industry insurer over a 2022 data breach.

  • August 28, 2024

    Calif. Assembly OKs 1st-Of-Its-Kind AI Safety Bill

    California lawmakers on Wednesday approved a groundbreaking proposal that would set safety and security standards for large artificial intelligence models.

  • August 28, 2024

    Telegram CEO Indicted In France Over Crimes On Platform

    Paris prosecutors on Wednesday unveiled wide-ranging criminal charges against Pavel Durov, the founder and CEO of encrypted messaging-platform Telegram, accusing him of aiding illegal child-pornography, fraud and other crimes and obstructing investigations, and barring him from leaving the country.

  • August 28, 2024

    Orrick, Okla. Atty Deny Violating MOVEit MDL Judge's Orders

    Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP and an Oklahoma attorney have denied violating court orders in multidistrict litigation over a 2023 data breach involving Progress Software's MOVEit file transfer tool, telling a Massachusetts federal court they were allowed to settle similar state litigation against a payroll software provider outside the federal action.

  • August 28, 2024

    Feds Say Multimillion-Dollar 'Surge' Scheme Bilked Uber Riders

    New York federal prosecutors on Wednesday accused two men of leading a yearslong scheme that allowed hundreds of Uber drivers to use illicit apps, including some named Screwber and FakeGPS, to manipulate the rideshare market and gain millions of dollars from riders in fraudulent surge fees.

  • August 28, 2024

    Hunter Biden's Addiction Expert Knocked Out Of Tax Trial

    A California federal judge on Tuesday barred Hunter Biden's expected addiction expert from testifying in his upcoming trial on tax charges, saying the expert's opinions hadn't been clearly linked to the specifics of Biden's own struggle.

  • August 28, 2024

    ACLU Offers Harris 'Roadmap' To Rein In Gov't Surveillance

    The American Civil Liberties Union is urging the Democratic presidential nominee to stop what the group calls exploitation of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act by the federal government by ending unwarranted surveillance of Americans if she wins office in November.

  • August 28, 2024

    US, Canada Agree To Work Together On Privacy Enforcement

    The Federal Communications Commission said Wednesday it has inked an agreement with Canada's privacy regulator to share information and cooperate on enforcement actions to protect consumers' data.

  • August 28, 2024

    Yelp Sues Google Over Reviews Self-Preferencing

    Yelp sued Google in California federal court Wednesday, targeting the self-preferencing of Google's own local search offerings as illegal monopolization after years of public lobbying against the search giant.

  • August 28, 2024

    SEC Omits 'Swing Pricing' Plan From Fund Disclosure Rules

    A divided U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday agreed to require more detailed and frequent disclosures from mutual funds, though regulators dropped plans — at least for now — to implement a controversial "swing pricing" provision.

  • August 28, 2024

    TikTok Lawsuit, Kids' Privacy Bills Push Cos. 'Back To Basics'

    The federal government's lawsuit challenging TikTok's policing of kids on its platform and mounting efforts to boost online protections for teens is ramping up pressure on a broad range of website operators, highlighting the importance for companies to think beyond existing legal frameworks to avoid growing legal scrutiny.

  • August 28, 2024

    Jones Walker Adds In-House Vet To Co-Lead Privacy, AI Team

    Jones Walker LLP has a new co-leader of its privacy, data strategy and artificial intelligence team in Atlanta who has served in prominent in-house roles at both global consulting firm Vialto Partners and EY.

  • August 28, 2024

    Top Gov't Contracts Cases To Watch In The 2nd Half Of 2024

    Federal courts in the latter half of 2024 are expected to scrutinize a strict federal registration requirement for contractors and decide whether whistleblower False Claims Act cases are constitutional, potentially affecting a key federal anti-fraud tool. Here, Law360 previews key disputes that government contractors should have on their radar in the second half of the year.

  • August 27, 2024

    'Real Martha' Of 'Baby Reindeer' Says Netflix Must Face Suit

    A Scottish lawyer who alleges that Netflix's "Baby Reindeer" series defamed her through its portrayal of a violent stalker character urged a California federal judge Monday not to toss her lawsuit, arguing that the hate mail and death threats she's received prove that the public believes that the portrayal of her is true.

Expert Analysis

  • How SEC Could Tackle AI Regulations On Brokers, Advisers

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission held an open meeting of its Investor Advisory Committee on June 6 to review the use of artificial intelligence in investment decision making, showing that regulators are being careful not to stifle innovation or implement rules that will quickly be made irrelevant after their passage, says Brian Korn at Manatt Phelps.

  • Litigation Inspiration: Attys Can Be Heroic Like Olympians

    Author Photo

    Although litigation won’t earn anyone an Olympic medal in Paris this summer, it can be worthy of the same lasting honor if attorneys exercise focused restraint — seeking both their clients’ interests and those of the court — instead of merely pursuing every advantage short of sanctionable conduct, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.

  • Unpacking NY's Revised Hospital Cybersecurity Rule Proposal

    Author Photo

    The New York State Department of Health's recently revised hospital cybersecurity rule proposal highlights increased expectations and scrutiny around cybersecurity in the healthcare sector, while adapting to both recent industry developments and public comments, say Christine Moundas and Gideon Zvi Palte at Ropes & Gray.

  • What TikTok's Race Against The Clock Teaches Chinese Firms

    Author Photo

    The Biden administration's recent divestiture deadline on TikTok parent ByteDance provides useful information for other China-based companies looking to do business in the U.S., including the need to keep products for each market separate and implement firewalls at the design stage, says Richard Lomuscio at Stinson.

  • Updated Federal Rules Can Improve Product Liability MDLs

    Author Photo

    The recent amendment of a federal evidence rule regarding expert testimony and the proposal of a civil rule on managing early discovery in multidistrict legislation hold great promise for promoting the uniform and efficient processes that high-stakes product liability cases particularly need, say Alan Klein and William Heaston at Duane Morris.

  • Lean Into The 'Great Restoration' To Retain Legal Talent

    Author Photo

    As the “great resignation,” in which employees voluntarily left their jobs in droves, has largely dissipated, legal employers should now work toward the idea of a “great restoration,” adopting strategies to effectively hire, onboard and retain top legal talent, says Molly McGrath at Hiring & Empowering Solutions.

  • AI-Generated Soundalikes Pose Right Of Publicity Issues

    Author Photo

    Artificial intelligence voice generators have recently proliferated, allowing users to create new voices or manipulate existing vocals with no audio engineering expertise, and although soundalikes may be permissible in certain cases, they likely violate the right of publicity of the person who is being mimicked, says Matthew Savare at Lowenstein Sandler.

  • Beware Of Trademark Scammers Leveraging USPTO Data

    Author Photo

    Amid a recent uptick in fraudulent communications directed at trademark applicants, registrants must understand how to protect themselves and their brand from fraudulent schemes and solicitation, say Michael Kelber and Alexandra Maloney at Neal Gerber.

  • Series

    Fishing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    Atop the list of ways fishing makes me a better lawyer is the relief it offers from the chronic stress of a demanding caseload, but it has also improved my listening skills and patience, and has served as an exceptional setting for building earnest relationships, says Steven DeGeorge​​​​​​​ at Robinson Bradshaw.

  • A Look At US-EU Consumer Finance Talks' Slow First Steps

    Author Photo

    The unhurried and informal nature of planned discussions between the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the European commissioner for justice and consumer protection suggests any coordinated regulatory action on issues like AI and "buy now, pay later" services is still a ways off, say attorneys at DLA Piper.

  • A Healthier Legal Industry Starts With Emotional Intelligence

    Author Photo

    The legal profession has long been plagued by high rates of mental health issues, in part due to attorneys’ early training and broader societal stereotypes — but developing one’s emotional intelligence is one way to foster positive change, collectively and individually, says attorney Esperanza Franco.

  • Calif. Web Tracking Cases Show Courts' Indecision Over CIPA

    Author Photo

    Several hundred cases filed to date, and two recent conflicting rulings, underscore California courts' uncertainty over whether the use of web analytics tools to track users' website interactions can give rise to a violation of the California Invasion of Privacy Act, says Patricia Brum at Snell & Wilmer.

  • To Make Your Legal Writing Clear, Emulate A Master Chef

    Author Photo

    To deliver clear and effective written advocacy, lawyers should follow the model of a fine dining chef — seasoning a foundation of pure facts with punchy descriptors, spicing it up with analogies, refining the recipe and trimming the fat — thus catering to a sophisticated audience of decision-makers, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

  • Takeaways From SEC's New Data Breach Amendments

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent amendment of its consumer privacy rules to require investment advisers and broker-dealers to put procedures in place to uncover data breaches and report them to customers evidences that protecting client records and information remains an SEC priority, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

  • Circuit Judge Writes An Opinion, AI Helps: What Now?

    Author Photo

    Last week's Eleventh Circuit opinion in Snell v. United Specialty Insurance, notable for a concurrence outlining the use of artificial intelligence to evaluate a term's common meaning, is hopefully the first step toward developing a coherent basis for the judiciary's generative AI use, says David Zaslowsky at Baker McKenzie.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Cybersecurity & Privacy archive.
Hello! I'm Law360's automated support bot.

How can I help you today?

For example, you can type:
  • I forgot my password
  • I took a free trial but didn't get a verification email
  • How do I sign up for a newsletter?
Ask a question!