In a March 31, 2025 letter, the Chair of the FTC, Andrew Ferguson, wrote to the Acting U.S. Bankruptcy Trustee and set out the FTC’s expectations for the protection of consumer information held by 23andMe.
As we noted...more
The chapter 11 bankruptcy cases of 23andMe Holding Co. and its affiliated debtors (collectively, “23andMe”), the company that provides direct-to-consumer genetic testing and ancestry services, has prompted a wave of panicked...more
3/28/2025
/ 23andMe ,
Bankruptcy Code ,
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
Chapter 11 ,
Consumer Privacy Rights ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Genetic Testing ,
Privacy Laws ,
Privacy Policy
The Federal Trade Commission's first update in over a decade to its rules under the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”) did not bring the dramatic updates that some privacy advocates had requested. Instead, the...more
1/23/2025
/ Biometric Information ,
Consent ,
Consumer Privacy Rights ,
COPPA ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Retention ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Online Safety for Children ,
Personal Information ,
Privacy Laws ,
Regulatory Agenda
The FTC has updated its HBNR to clarify that the rule also restricts marketing practices involving personal health information. This update to the HBNR was announced on April 26, 2024, and follows several recent enforcement...more
4/29/2024
/ Breach Notification Rule ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Digital Health ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Healthcare ,
PHI ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Technology
In the FTC’s first case focused on the privacy and security of genetic information, the FTC alleges that San Francisco-based Vitagene, Inc. – now known as 1Health.io – failed to live up to its promises and unfairly changed...more
6/21/2023
/ Cloud Storage ,
Confidential Information ,
Consumer Privacy Rights ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Data Collection ,
Data Protection ,
Data Use Policies ,
DNA ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Genetic Testing ,
Life Sciences ,
Personal Information ,
Privacy Laws
In a very comprehensive post from the Federal Trade Commission’s Office of Technology, the FTC takes what it calls “[a] deep dive into the technical side of FTC’s recent cases on digital health platforms, GoodRx &...more
3/17/2023
/ Advertising ,
Data Collection ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Digital Platforms ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Health Information Technologies ,
Healthcare ,
Information Sharing ,
Personal Information ,
Technology Sector ,
Third-Party ,
Web Tracking ,
Websites
If your company creates health-related apps, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has set out some key considerations:
- Make accurate representations. Clearly explain how people’s information will be used and shared and then...more
4/26/2022
/ App Developers ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Collection ,
Data Privacy ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Healthcare ,
Information Sharing ,
Mobile Apps ,
Mobile Devices ,
Popular ,
Privacy Concerns ,
Privacy Policy ,
Risk Management
InfoTrax Systems, a Utah-based technology company, has agreed to implement a comprehensive data security program to settle Federal Trade Commission allegations that the company failed to put in place reasonable security...more
12/2/2019
/ Consumer Privacy Rights ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Hackers ,
Information Security ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Popular ,
Settlement ,
Websites
As if having to deal with all the EU’s Data Protection Authorities wasn’t challenge enough for companies trying to comply with GDPR, the FTC has now asserted that it has a role in GDPR enforcement. In particular, the FTC says...more
As noted in the FTC alert from Lisa Weintraub Schifferle, an attorney with the FTC’s Division of Consumer & Business Education, thanks to a new federal law, soon you can get free credit freezes and year-long fraud alerts....more
Does your business collect and share consumer health information? Check out these tips from the FTC for complying with HIPAA and the FTC Act....more
Another day, another 500 million Yahoo accounts reached. Our friends at the FTC are right on top of this with guidance for individuals with Yahoo accounts. First and foremost, change your Yahoo password....more
Very interesting thought piece from the FTC’s Chief Technologist. Do mandatory password resets actually make us less secure? ...more
What follows below is the EU’s press release regarding the agreement on a replacement for the EU-US Safe Harbor. We are working to get details and will schedule a webinar on the new framework shortly....more
2/3/2016
/ Data Protection Authority ,
EU ,
EU-US Privacy Shield ,
European Commission ,
European Court of Justice (ECJ) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
International Data Transfers ,
Personal Data ,
Press Releases ,
Surveillance ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
US-EU Safe Harbor Framework
This month’s edition of the Advanced Cyber Security Center’s newletter includes my discussion of lessons to be learned from the Wyndham decision:
Historically, security was an issue reserved in a back room for the IT...more
10/1/2015
/ Cyber Attacks ,
Cyber Threats ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Collection ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FTC v Wyndham ,
Hackers ,
Identity Theft ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Privacy Policy ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
The FTC recently filed a comment on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s advance notice of proposed rulemaking related to vehicle-to-vehicle communications. The comment left no doubt that the FTC wants to...more