Welcome to Socially Aware

Socially Aware is devoted to the law and business of social media, proactively addressing emerging issues and keeping our clients informed of new developments. We cover fields such as artificial intelligence, privacy and data security, Section 230, intellectual property, and much more.

March 03, 2023 - Artificial Intelligence, Copyright
Copyright Office Denies Claim to Copyright in Generative AI Images
By: Joseph C. Gratz
The U.S. Copyright Office has denied an attempt to register copyright in images created using the Midjourney generative AI tool. The reasoning of its decision sharply limits the potential paths to receiving copyright in images created using generative AI tools, even where that output
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February 27, 2023 - IP, Section 230 Safe Harbor
Court Holds That Section 230’s Carve Out for “intellectual Property” Does Not Apply to Publicity Rights Claim in New York
By: Aaron P. Rubin and J. Alexander Lawrence
Section 230 of the Communications and Decency Act provides broad immunity to online platforms for claims arising from hosting third-party content (though just how broad is a hot issue that the Supreme Court may decide this term in Gonzalez v. Google LLC ). But
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February 15, 2023 - Data Security, Privacy
Fourth Circuit Addresses Whether the CDA Bars Fair Credit Reporting Act Claims Against Online Background Report Site
By: J. Alexander Lawrence, Aaron P. Rubin and Dillon Kraus
Websites offering online background reports have proliferated on the Internet. Consumers asserting claims against such sites under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) have faced hurdles under Section 230(c)(1) of the Communications Decency Act (CDA). Operators of the sites argue that they are online service providers
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February 15, 2023 - Copyright, Artificial Intelligence
Are Outputs of Ai Models Copyrightable?
By: Evangeline Phang, Tessa Schwartz and Aaron P. Rubin
Heather Whitney, Evangeline Phang, Tessa Schwartz, and Aaron Rubin authored an article for Law360 covering whether the outputs of generative artificial intelligence tools are copyrightable. Read the full article.
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November 21, 2022 - Section 230 Safe Harbor, Supreme Court
Supreme Court to Address Section 230 for First Time
By: Aaron P. Rubin, J. Alexander Lawrence and Dillon Kraus
On October 3, 2022, the United States Supreme Court granted certiorari in Gonzalez v. Google LLC , No.1-1333 , to address the scope of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. The Court will consider whether Section 230(c)(1) immunizes website operators and other online
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November 21, 2022 - Section 230 Safe Harbor, Supreme Court
Ninth Circuit Interprets FOSTA Restriction on Section 230 Narrowly
On October 24, 2022, the Ninth Circuit ruled that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act shielded Reddit Inc. from liability under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPA). The court considered the text of a 2018 amendment to Section 230, known as the
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May 17, 2022 - Social Media Policy
Coalition of State Attorneys General Investigate Tiktok’s Potential Harm to Children and Teens
By: Aaron P. Rubin, Julie O'Neill and Anthony M. Ramirez
In early March 2022, a coalition of state attorneys general launched an investigation of TikTok to determine whether the social media platform, which is popular among young Americans, causes long-term harm to them. Initiated in the Massachusetts attorney general’s office and led by Massachusetts
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April 04, 2022 - Advertising, Digital Content, E-Commerce, Privacy, Social Media Policy
Social Links: Behavioral targeting under scrutiny from lawmakers
By: Aaron P. Rubin, Julie O'Neill and Anthony M. Ramirez
Lawmakers on Capitol Hill continue to take aim at social media platforms that collect and use personal information that build algorithms to target individuals across a variety of dimensions when users engage with those platforms, most prominently in the form of advertising and other
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January 20, 2022 - Privacy
Forgot to Cancel? Pay Attention to Recent Auto-Renewal Law Changes
By: Julie O'Neill
As subscription models have gained exponential traction, legislatures are clamoring to ensure that their auto-renewal laws keep up with novel consumer protection issues. Several states have introduced or revised their auto-renewal laws, and the Federal Trade Commission has affirmed its commitment to enforce against
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December 21, 2021 - Digital Content, E-Commerce, Privacy, Social Media Policy, Compliance
Facebook rebrands as “Meta;” disables facial recognition capabilities
By: Aaron P. Rubin, Julie O'Neill and Anthony M. Ramirez
In late October, Facebook announced that it would change its name to Meta , signaling a shift of the social media giant’s focus toward the metaverse , a virtual space where social media, gaming, augmented reality, virtual reality, and cryptocurrencies converge and allow people
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Welcome to Socially Aware

Copyright Office Denies Claim to Copyright in Generative AI Images

By: Joseph C. Gratz

Court Holds That Section 230’s Carve Out for “intellectual Property” Does Not Apply to Publicity Rights Claim in New York

By: Aaron P. Rubin and J. Alexander Lawrence

Fourth Circuit Addresses Whether the CDA Bars Fair Credit Reporting Act Claims Against Online Background Report Site

By: J. Alexander Lawrence, Aaron P. Rubin and Dillon Kraus

Are Outputs of Ai Models Copyrightable?

By: Evangeline Phang, Tessa Schwartz and Aaron P. Rubin

Supreme Court to Address Section 230 for First Time

By: Aaron P. Rubin, J. Alexander Lawrence and Dillon Kraus

Ninth Circuit Interprets FOSTA Restriction on Section 230 Narrowly

Coalition of State Attorneys General Investigate Tiktok’s Potential Harm to Children and Teens

By: Aaron P. Rubin, Julie O'Neill and Anthony M. Ramirez

Social Links: Behavioral targeting under scrutiny from lawmakers

By: Aaron P. Rubin, Julie O'Neill and Anthony M. Ramirez

Forgot to Cancel? Pay Attention to Recent Auto-Renewal Law Changes

By: Julie O'Neill

Facebook rebrands as “Meta;” disables facial recognition capabilities

By: Aaron P. Rubin, Julie O'Neill and Anthony M. Ramirez