Social Links: NJ court allows police to read suspects’ private messages; tech companies’ increased control over users’ devices; an app that blocks political posts
- A New Jersey court rules that state police can examine a suspect’s private social media messages without having to apply for an order under the state’s wiretapping laws. Technology companies are exercising a lot of control ever over users’ devices remotely, and it’s implicating privacy... ›
Now Available: The February Issue of Our Socially Aware Newsletter
By: Aaron P. Rubin
The latest issue of our Socially Aware newsletter is now available here. In this edition,we examine a spate of court decisions that appear to rein in the historically broad scope of the Communications Decency Act’s Section 230 safe harbor for website operators; we outline... ›Snapchat Clocks Section 230 Win in Speed Filter Case
By: Aaron P. Rubin
We have been monitoring a trend of cases narrowing the immunity provided to website operators under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (CDA). A recent decision by a state court in Georgia, however, demonstrates that Section 230 continues to be applied expansively in... ›Social Links: Will a fan-made Star Trek prequel live long and prosper?; California bans driving while Snapchatting; apps that facilitate infidelity
By: Aaron P. Rubin
A federal district court judge refused to grant summary judgment to the copyright owners of the Star Trek franchise in the infringement suit they brought against the team behind a fan-made, crowdfunded prequel to the original Star Trek television series. Strict new European Union... ›Social Links: AI displaces insurance company employees; revenge-porn victim seeks injunction against search engines; Wendy’s wins Twitter war against a troll
By: Aaron P. Rubin
Over 30 workers at a Japanese insurance company are losing their jobs following the company’s adoption of IBM’s Watson Explorer, an artificial intelligence system that will perform an important back office function at the company. Medium laid off a big chunk of its team... ›In a Rough Year for CDA Section 230, Manchanda v. Google Provides Comfort to Website Operators
By: Aaron P. Rubin
As we noted in our recent post on the Ninth Circuit case Kimzey v. Yelp! Inc., in the right circumstances, Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (CDA) still provides robust protection against liability for website operators despite the unusually large number of decisions... ›Social Links: IMDb sues over right to post actors’ ages; Facebook tests jobs feature; Pinterest adopts “tried it” button
By: Aaron P. Rubin
The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) has filed suit to overturn a law that requires the popular entertainment website to remove the ages or birth dates of people in the entertainment industry upon request. Vine might not be history after all. Twitter users posted more than... ›Social Links: LinkedIn’s new feature estimates salaries; states grapple with digital-asset-inheritance laws; insurance company wants to base rates on applicants’ Facebook posts
By: Aaron P. Rubin
Because it bases its assessments on job title, location and industry, LinkedIn’s new Salary feature might be more accurate than are other online compensation estimation tools. States are trying to pass laws that balance bereaved people’s desire to access their deceased loved ones’ social media accounts... ›Second Circuit: Email Stored Outside the U.S. Might Be Beyond Government’s Reach
As a result of the Second Circuit’s recent opinion in Microsoft v. United States , the U.S. government likely can no longer use warrants issued pursuant to the Stored Communications Act (“SCA”) to compel U.S.-based companies to produce communications, such as emails, that are... ›Social Links: Yelp’s Communications Decency Act claim; Twitter loosens its character limit; building a Snapchat audience
By: Aaron P. Rubin
The California Supreme Court agreed to hear Yelp’s case arguing that requiring the company to remove a one-star review of a law firm “creates a gaping hole” in the immunity that shields internet service providers from suits related to user-generated content. Images, videos and... ›