As predicted, 2022 has been a busy year for the U.S. privacy world. Utah’s Consumer Privacy Act, the fourth state privacy law, was signed into law on March 24, 2022. Connecticut is now likely to be the fifth state to enact its own privacy law. The Connecticut Data Privacy Act (Senate Bill 6) passed both the House and Senate in [...]
On March 11, the FTC filed an administrative complaint against HomeAdvisor, Inc., alleging they sold false, misleading, or unsubstantiated leads to service providers since at least mid-2014. The FTC asserts that HomeAdvisor’s sales team and marketing materials misrepresented the quality, characteristics, and source of the leads. The Commission’s 4-0 decision to issue the complaint against HomeAdvisor officially begins this proceeding, [...]
In late 2021, the Federal Trade Commission amended the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act’s Safeguards Rule enhancing information security program (ISP) requirements that non-bank financial institutions must implement to protect their customers’ personal information. The Rule applies to financial institutions that are subject to the FTC’s jurisdiction and not regulated by another regulator, such as auto dealers, collection agencies, and payday lenders. Covered [...]
We expected 2022 to be a busy year on the U.S. privacy front, and the first couple of months did not disappoint! The current headliner is the Utah Consumer Privacy Act, which the state legislature passed unanimously and should hit the governor’s desk before the legislature adjourns on March 4th. Utah modeled its law after the Virginia Consumer Data Protection [...]
Are you preparing for 2023’s new data privacy requirements? New privacy legislation in California, Colorado, and Virginia is coming and it’s going to impact – perhaps significantly! – how you process, store, and share consumer data. Depending on where your organization stands now, you may have a lot of work on your plate. Not sure where to start? Check out [...]
On January 28th, National Data Privacy Day, California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced that his office had notified several businesses operating loyalty programs in California about alleged noncompliance with the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). The CCPA allows businesses to offer financial incentives in exchange for collecting, selling, or sharing personal information with the consumer’s consent. Businesses that offer a [...]
Last week, Fashion Nova, a California fast-fashion retailer, signed a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission that requires it to pay $4.2 million. The FTC’s Complaint alleges that Fashion Nova blocked negative product reviews from being posted on its website. The agency says this is its first case to challenge the practice of suppressing negative customer reviews. Specifically, the FTC [...]
Nearly two years into the coronavirus pandemic, we are seeing an increasing number of EEOC Charges of Discrimination include claims of retaliation, not only for discrimination of statutorily protected persons, but also with respect to employers’ response and remediation of COVID-19 related issues. EEOC Chair Burrows announced an EEOC initiative, launching on November 17, 2021, which will include a virtual [...]
If you didn’t receive a warning letter from the Federal Trade Commission this month you are one of the lucky ones. The FTC has sent warning letters to hundreds of companies over the past several weeks. Using its Penalty Offense Authority, the FTC sent Notices of Penalty Offenses to more than 700 of the U.S.’s largest consumer products companies as [...]
The Federal Trade Commission has warned hundreds of consumer product companies and for-profit schools that they may be engaging in unfair or deceptive behaviors that could result in future enforcement action if these behaviors do not change. The FTC was focused on two issues: 1) deceptive testimonials and endorsements, and 2) performance claims. The warnings signal the FTC’s intent to [...]
