privacy News

Meta Faces Stiff Privacy Review as FTC Claims New Violations

Meta Platforms Inc. was accused by the Federal Trade Commission of repeatedly violating privacy promises it made to US regulators and now faces a possible government ban on launching new social-media products without an independent review. Meta, the parent company …

Hackers Stole Arizona School Data; Teachers Left in the Dark

Classrooms across Tucson, Arizona, were ravaged by ransomware in January that locked up computer systems and forced teachers to revamp lesson plans. Officials in southern Arizona’s largest school district tried assuring students and staff for weeks that, despite the cyberattack, …

California’s Office of Administrative Law OKs Privacy Regulations

The California Privacy Protection Agency finalized its first substantive rulemaking package to further implement the California Consumer Privacy Act, which was approved by the California Office of Administrative Law. The approved regulations, which are effective immediately, update existing CCPA regulations …

TikTok Attacked for China Ties as US Lawmakers Push for Ban

U.S. lawmakers on Thursday battered TikTok’s chief executive about potential Chinese influence over the platform and said its short videos were damaging children’s mental health, reflecting bipartisan concerns over the app’s power over Americans. CEO Shou Zi Chew’s testimony before …

Meta’s Record Privacy Settlement Spurs Dispute Over State Claims

Meta Platforms Inc. is wrong to say its $725 million settlement of a lawsuit claiming Facebook illegally shared user data with a controversial research firm protects it from similar claims brought by New Mexico, attorneys for the US state said. …

Illinois Supreme Court: BIPA Claims Accrue With Each Scan

The Illinois Supreme Court ruled Friday that a separate claim accrues each time a business unlawfully scans or transmits an individual’s biometric identifier or information, a decision that could drive up class action settlements against repeated Biometric Information Privacy Act …

Facebook Hit With $1 Million Fine Tied to User-Privacy Lawsuit

Facebook and its outside law firm were ordered to pay almost $1 million in sanctions for deceitfully denying that it shared users’ private information with third parties without permission. The fine is “loose change” for Facebook and Gibson Dunn & …

GoodRx Pays $1.5 Million to Settle Health Privacy Allegations

U.S. healthcare firm GoodRx Holdings has agreed to pay $1.5 million to settle allegations that it failed to notify customers that it shared personal health information with Alphabet’s Google, Meta’s Facebook and others, the Federal Trade Commission said on Wednesday. …

Subpoena Granted in Reno Mayor’s Lawsuit over Tracking Device

A Nevada judge has granted subpoenas sought by Reno Mayor Hillary Schieve to force a private investigator to identify who hired his firm to secretly install a tracking device on her vehicle. Washoe County District Judge David Hardy approved the …

460K Partial Social Security Numbers Mistakenly Released in Washington

A county in Washington inadvertently released nearly half a million partial Social Security Numbers when responding to a routine public records request in December, according to county officials. The Pierce County Auditor’s Office, which mistakenly released the sensitive data, said …