Socially Aware

April 30, 2019 - Digital Content, User-Generated Content, Section 230 Safe Harbor, Litigation
Appeals Court Again Upholds Section 230 Protections in Case Against Grindr
By: Aaron P. Rubin
Often hailed as the law that gave us the modern Internet , Section 230 of the Communication Decency Act generally protects online platforms from liability for content posted by third parties. Many commentators, including us here at Socially Aware , have noted that Section
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April 16, 2019 - Advertising, First Amendment, European Union, Influencer Marketing, Copyright, Free Speech, Compliance, Litigation
Social Links: An EU law to protect copyright owners online; collecting biometric data without running afoul of the law; influencers’ attempts to appear more authentic
By: Anthony M. Ramirez
A new law in Australia makes a social media company’s failure to remove “abhorrent violent material” from its platform punishable by significant fines. The law also states that the executives at social media companies who fail to remove the content could be sentenced to
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April 05, 2019 - Disappearing Content, Ephemeral Messaging
How to Comply with the Revised Ephemeral-Messaging Provision in the DOJ’s Corporate Enforcement Policy
By: Charles E. Duross and James M. Koukios
In early March 2019, the Department of Justice (DOJ) revised its Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) Corporate Enforcement Policy (the Policy). First announced in November 2017, the Policy is designed to encourage companies to self-report FCPA violations and to cooperate with the DOJ’s FCPA
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March 21, 2019 - Advertising, Class Actions, Copyright, Right of Publicity
What’s in a (User)Name?
By: Aaron P. Rubin
As consumers increasingly communicate and interact through social media platforms, courts have had to grapple with how to apply existing laws to new ways of communicating, as well as disseminating and using content. Sometimes, however, traditional legal standards apply to these new platforms in
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March 19, 2019 - Advertising, Digital Content, Cyberbullying, Privacy, Big Data, COPPA, Free Speech
YouTube disallows ads on anti-vax content; privacy bills aim to extend children’s protections from Internet harm, secure users’ control over data
By: Julie O'Neill
New York is now one of the 43 states where “revenge porn,” the posting of explicit photographs or videos to the Internet without the subject’s consent, is punishable by law. See how far the states have come – find out how many had criminalized
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March 14, 2019 - European Union, Data Security, Privacy
The Cookie Wall Must Go Up. Or Not?
By: Alex van der Wolk and Mercedes Samavi
One of the next big items in Europe will be the expansion of “ePrivacy,” (which, among other things, regulates the use of cookies on websites). While the ePrivacy reform is still being worked on by EU lawmakers, one of the items the ePrivacy Regulation
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March 08, 2019 - FTC, Data Security, Privacy, COPPA
Thank You, Next Enforcement: Music Video App Violates COPPA, Will Pay $5.7 Million
By: Julie O'Neill
The cost for violating the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) has been steadily rising, and companies subject to the law should take heed. Last week, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a record-setting $5.7 million settlement with the mobile app company Musical.ly for
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March 05, 2019 - European Union, User-Generated Content, Copyright
Time to Hit Pause: Copyright Infringement on User Generated Platforms – When Is the Platform Provider Liable for Damages?
By: Kristina Ehle and Stephan Kreß
In 2019, the European Court of Justice (CJEU) is expected to clarify one of the key open issues in EU copyright law: the extent to which online platforms such as YouTube can be liable for copyright infringement caused by user-generated content—content uploaded on to
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February 26, 2019 - Advertising, Discovery, Litigation
Social Links: Settlement declares fake “likes” illegal; Pinterest’s impending IPO; a bill to criminalize “social media extortion”
By: Aaron P. Rubin
In what is being described as “ the first settlement to deem such sales illegally deceptive ,” New York Attorney General Letitia James has entered into a settlement with a company that had been selling fake followers, likes and views on several social media platforms.
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January 30, 2019 - Data Security, Privacy
California AG Hosts Two More Public Forums on CCPA in Riverside and Los Angeles
By: Purvi G. Patel and Nathan D. Taylor
The California Attorney General continued its series of public forums regarding the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), with forums last week in Riverside (January 24, 2019) and Los Angeles (January 25, 2019). As in the previous forums, there were a significant number of attendees,
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Appeals Court Again Upholds Section 230 Protections in Case Against Grindr

By: Aaron P. Rubin

Social Links: An EU law to protect copyright owners online; collecting biometric data without running afoul of the law; influencers’ attempts to appear more authentic

By: Anthony M. Ramirez

How to Comply with the Revised Ephemeral-Messaging Provision in the DOJ’s Corporate Enforcement Policy

By: Charles E. Duross and James M. Koukios

What’s in a (User)Name?

By: Aaron P. Rubin

YouTube disallows ads on anti-vax content; privacy bills aim to extend children’s protections from Internet harm, secure users’ control over data

By: Julie O'Neill

The Cookie Wall Must Go Up. Or Not?

By: Alex van der Wolk and Mercedes Samavi

Thank You, Next Enforcement: Music Video App Violates COPPA, Will Pay $5.7 Million

By: Julie O'Neill

Time to Hit Pause: Copyright Infringement on User Generated Platforms – When Is the Platform Provider Liable for Damages?

By: Kristina Ehle and Stephan Kreß

Social Links: Settlement declares fake “likes” illegal; Pinterest’s impending IPO; a bill to criminalize “social media extortion”

By: Aaron P. Rubin

California AG Hosts Two More Public Forums on CCPA in Riverside and Los Angeles

By: Purvi G. Patel and Nathan D. Taylor