privacy News

Top EU Privacy Regulator Opens Probe Into Google’s AI Compliance

The top EU privacy regulator opened an inquiry on Thursday into whether search engine giant Google adequately protected European Union users’ personal data before using it to help develop its foundational AI Model. Ireland’s Data Protection Commission (DPC), the lead …

Maine Regulators Reject Letting Utility Report Suspect Marijuana Growers to Police

Maine utility regulators unanimously rejected on Tuesday an electric utility’s proposal to proactively report high consumption that signals a marijuana growing operation to law enforcement officials in an attempt to aid police crackdown on illicit operations. The three-member Public Utilities …

TikTok Sued by US for Allegedly Breaking Kids’ Privacy Law

TikTok was sued by the US for allegedly collecting data on children in violation of an online privacy act, three months after the popular video app sued the government over a law that could ban it across the country. In …

DOJ Drops Claims That TikTok Misled US Consumers in Lawsuit

The US Justice Department is dropping one of two proposed claims against ByteDance Ltd.’s TikTok, planning to focus a consumer protection lawsuit later this year on children’s privacy instead of allegations the video-sharing platform misled consumers about their data security. …

Michigan Supreme Court Rules Against Couple in Drone Surveillance Case

The Michigan Supreme Court unanimously ruled in favor of a local government Friday in a dispute over sending a drone to take pictures of a rural salvage yard without permission. Liberal and conservative groups closely watched the case, even joining …

Ring in California Paying $5.6M to Customers as Part of Privacy Settlement

The Federal Trade Commission is sending more than $5.6 million in refunds to consumers as part of a settlement with Amazon-owned Ring, which was charged with failing to protect private video footage from outside access. In a 2023 complaint, the …

FTC Asks Congress for Authority Over Its Own Consumer Cases

The US Federal Trade Commission is asking Congress to change the law so it can handle its own privacy settlements and other consumer protection cases that it’s currently forced to refer to the Justice Department. The DOJ has been slow-walking …

Ring Will No Longer Allow Police to Request Users’ Doorbell Camera Footage

Amazon-owned Ring will stop allowing police departments to request doorbell camera footage from users, marking an end to a feature that has drawn criticism from privacy advocates. In a blog post on Wednesday, Ring said it will sunset the “Request …

Majority of Underwriters Predict Cyber Risks Grow ‘Greatly’ in 2024: Survey

Underwriters who thought the growing cyber risk landscape of the past several years would level off soon might want to think again. Woodruff Sawyer’s annual survey of cyber insurance carriers found all underwriters surveyed believe cyber risk will increase in …

Google Settles $5 Billion Consumer Privacy Lawsuit

Alphabet’s Google has agreed to settle a lawsuit claiming it secretly tracked the internet use of millions of people who thought they were doing their browsing privately. U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in Oakland, California, put a scheduled Feb. …