Privacy & Information Security Law Blog

On November 19, 2013, the Federal Trade Commission held a workshop in Washington, D.C. to discuss The Internet of Things: Privacy & Security in a Connected World. FTC Chair Edith Ramirez and FTC Senior Attorney Karen Jagielski provided the opening remarks. Chairwoman Ramirez raised three key issues for workshop participants to consider:

On November 19, 2013, Hunton & Williams’ Global Privacy and Cybersecurity practice group hosted the second webcast in its Hunton Global Privacy Update series. The program focused on the latest updates regarding the EU General Data Protection Regulation (“Proposed Regulation”), including a discussion of the European Parliament’s recent approval of its Compromise Text for the Proposed Regulation.

The Luxembourg data protection authority (Commission nationale pour la protection des donées, “CNPD”) has stated that it will not investigate complaints relating to the alleged involvement of Microsoft Luxembourg (“Microsoft”) and Skype Software S.a.r.l. and Skype Communications S.a.r.l. (collectively, “Skype”) in the PRISM surveillance program. The PRISM surveillance program involves the transfer of EU citizens’ data to the U.S. National Security Agency (the “NSA”).

On November 14, 2013, the Minister of the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (the “Minister”) announced that Malaysia’s Personal Data Protection Act 2010 (the “Act”) would be going into effect as of November 15, marking the end of years of postponements. The following features of the law are of particular significance:

On November 13, 2013, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it denied a proposal submitted by AssertID, Inc. for a mechanism to obtain verifiable parental consent in accordance with the new Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule (the “COPPA Rule”) that came into effect July 1, 2013.

On November 4, 2013, the data protection authority (“DPA”) of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate announced two sets of recommendations for mobile payment systems, including contactless payments. The recommendations were prepared in conjunction with the state consumer protection agency, the Ministry of Justice for Rhineland-Palatinate, the mobile payment industry and research organizations.

On November 13, 2013, Google entered into a $17 million settlement agreement with the attorneys general from 37 states and the District of Columbia related to allegations that the company bypassed users’ cookie-blocking settings on Apple’s Safari browser in 2011 and 2012. The settlement requires Google to refrain from bypassing cookie controls in the future and requires Google to maintain a page on its site informing users about cookies and how to manage them. Last year, Google agreed to a $22.5 million settlement with the Federal Trade Commission in connection with similar ...

As reported in the Hunton Employment & Labor Perspectives Blog:

In a lawsuit filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas on November 4, 2013, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott sought injunctive and declaratory relief against the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) on the grounds that the agency’s April 2012 Enforcement Guidance on the Consideration of Arrest and Conviction Records in Employment Decisions “purports to preempt the State’s sovereign power to enact and abide by state-law hiring practices.” In particular, the complaint argues against the EEOC’s prohibition against blanket “no felons” hiring policies. The Texas AG’s complaint highlights key failures and shortcomings of the EEOC’s recent investigative actions, and provides detailed examples of the “real world” effect of the guidance on the state’s hiring decisions.

On October 27, 2013, the South Korean Ministry of Security and Public Administration indicated that the government will issue certifications to private and public organizations that meet certain requirements of the Personal Information Protection Act. According to The Korea Times, organizations will be able to apply for the certification with the National Information Society Agency (“NISA”) beginning on November 28, 2013. The number of requirements that an organization will be assessed against will depend on the size of the organization. The Korea Times reports ...

As we reported on October 8, 2013, the Information Commissioner’s Office (“ICO”) has announced it is reviewing its Privacy Notices Code of Practice (the “Code”) to assess whether it should be updated. In anticipation of the November 30^th closing date for comments on the Code, today the ICO’s Head of Policy Delivery posted a request for feedback on the ICO’s blog.