On June 6, the Texas Attorney General published a news release announcing that the Attorney General has opened an investigation into several car manufacturers. The news release states that the investigation was opened “after widespread reporting that [car manufacturers] have secretly been collecting mass amounts of data about drivers directly from their vehicles and then
Continue Reading Texas Attorney General Opens Investigation into Car Manufacturers’ Collection and Sale of Drivers’ Data
FTC Publishes Blog Post on Cars and Consumer Data
This week, the FTC published a blog post on the collection and use of consumer data in vehicles. The FTC warned that “Car manufacturers—and all businesses—should take note that the FTC will take action to protect consumers against the illegal collection, use, and disclosure of their personal data” and provided a summary of some recent
Continue Reading FTC Publishes Blog Post on Cars and Consumer DataCPPA Executive Director Remarks on Policy and Enforcement Priorities
A new post on the Covington Inside Privacy blog discusses remarks by California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA) Executive Director Ashkan Soltani at the International Association of Privacy Professionals’ global privacy conference last week. The remarks covered the CPPA’s priorities for rulemaking and administrative enforcement of the California Consumer Privacy Act, including with respect to connected
Continue Reading CPPA Executive Director Remarks on Policy and Enforcement PrioritiesKentucky Passes Comprehensive Privacy Bill
Earlier this month, the Kentucky legislature passed comprehensive privacy legislation, H.B. 15 (the “Act”), joining California, Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut, Utah, Iowa, Indiana, Tennessee, Montana, Oregon, Texas, Florida, Delaware, New Jersey, and New Hampshire. The Act is awaiting the Governor’s signature. If signed into
Continue Reading Kentucky Passes Comprehensive Privacy BillFTC on Models-as-a-Service
On January 9, the FTC published a blog post discussing privacy and confidentiality obligations for companies that provide artificial intelligence (“AI”) services. The FTC described “model-as-a-service” companies as those that develop, host, and provide pre-trained AI models to users and businesses through end-user interfaces or application programming interfaces (“APIs”). According to the FTC, when model-as-a-service
Continue Reading FTC on Models-as-a-ServiceCPPA Releases Draft Automated Decisionmaking Technology Regulations
Ahead of its December 8 board meeting, the California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA) has issued draft “automated decisionmaking technology” (ADMT) regulations. The CPPA has yet to initiate the formal rulemaking process and has stated that it expects to begin formal rulemaking next year. Accordingly, the draft ADMT regulations are subject to change. Below are the key takeaways: Continue Reading CPPA Releases Draft Automated Decisionmaking Technology Regulations
DOJ, FTC, CFPB, and EEOC Statement on Discrimination and AI
On April 25, 2023, four federal agencies — the Department of Justice (“DOJ”), Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”), Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”), and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) — released a joint statement on the agencies’ efforts to address discrimination and bias in automated systems. Continue Reading DOJ, FTC, CFPB, and EEOC Statement on Discrimination and AI
Artificial Intelligence & NYC Employers: New York City Seeks Publication of Proposed Rules That Would Regulate the Use of AI Tools in the Employment Context
Many employers and employment agencies have turned to artificial intelligence (“AI”) tools to assist them in making better and faster employment decisions, including in the hiring and promotion processes. The use of AI for these purposes has been scrutinized and will now be regulated in New York City. The New York City Department of Consumer
Continue Reading Artificial Intelligence & NYC Employers: New York City Seeks Publication of Proposed Rules That Would Regulate the Use of AI Tools in the Employment ContextFTC Announces Workshop To Examine Native Ads
The Federal Trade Commission will host a workshop on December 4, 2013 in Washington, DC to examine so-called “native advertising.” This term refers to the practice of blending advertisements with news, entertainment, and other content in digital media and is sometimes also referred to as “sponsored content.” As an FTC blog post explains, “[w]hatever the name, it’s for sure ads in digital media are starting to look a lot more like the surrounding content. What are the consumer protection implications now that those lines appear to be blurring?”
According to the Commission, the workshop builds on previous Commission initiatives, such as the Dot Com Disclosures guidance and the Endorsements and Testimonials guidance, to “help ensure that consumers can identify advertisements as advertising wherever they appear.” The FTC noted a number of questions and topics that may be covered at the workshop, including:
- What is the origin and purpose of the wall between regular content and advertising, and what challenges do publishers face in maintaining that wall in digital media, including in the mobile environment?
- In what ways are paid messages integrated into, or presented as, regular content and in what contexts does this integration occur? How does it differ when paid messages are displayed within mobile apps and on smart phones and other mobile devices?
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FTC, FCC Testify Before Senate On Robocall Fraud
Yesterday, the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety and Insurance held a hearing entitled, “Stopping Fraudulent Robocall Scams: Can More Be Done?” The hearing takes place two weeks after the FTC celebrated the ten-year anniversary of the its implementation of the Do Not Call Registry and on the heels of the FTC’s recent announcement that Mortgage Investors Corporation has agreed to pay $7.5 million (the largest Do Not Call fine the FTC has ever collected) to resolve FTC allegations that it violated provisions of the FTC’s Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR). The Federal Communications Commission, which has authority under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 (TCPA) to regulate prerecorded and auto-dialed calls, shares jurisdiction with the FTC over so-called robocallers.
Witnesses from both agencies participated in the hearing and highlighted their respective enforcement efforts. Lois Greisman, Associate Director, Division of Marketing Practices, Bureau of Consumer Protection, FTC, noted that there have been 105 FTC enforcement actions since the Commission began enforcement of the Do Not Call provisions. Eric Bash, Associate Bureau Chief, Enforcement Bureau, FCC, noted that the FCC has issued more than 500 citations for robocall violations pursuant to its authority under the TCPA. Mr. Bash’s written testimony describes the FCC’s enforcement authority:
In this day and age of heavy mobile phone use, it may be worth repeating that the FCC’s rules flatly prohibit all autodialed or prerecorded calls to mobile phones made for a non-emergency purpose without the called party’s permission. It does not matter whether the call is to persuade the called party to buy some thing or to support some cause. And, despite common mischaracterizations of the law, it does not matter whether the called party is charged for the call, or whether the content of a message is blasted by text or voice. (The FCC has been clear that “autodialed” text messages fit within the restriction.)
The applicability of the FCC’s rules to text messages has been the source of a significant volume of litigation.
Mr. Bash urged Congress to give the FCC the authority to pursue robocall violators without having to issues citations, expand the statute of limitations from one year to two, extend robocall prohibitions outside of U.S. jurisdiction, and give the FCC authority over third-party spoofing providers.
Continue Reading FTC, FCC Testify Before Senate On Robocall Fraud