Customer Privacy and the National Labor Relations Act
Last month, an Administrative Law Judge for the National Labor Relations Board ruled that Macy’s employee handbook contained overly broad confidential information policies. The decision continues efforts by the NLRB to police employer confidentiality policies, but it also demonstrates how industry efforts to protect privacy can inadvertently run afoul of Section 7 of the NLRA, […]
Rise of the Drones
This morning, the Center for Strategic and International Studies presented a panel conversation on some of the challenges – and opportunities – around domestic drone use. After following the issue for …
FPF Senior Fellow Peter Swire Provide Comments to the FCC on Broadband Consumer Privacy
Later today, Peter Swire, FPF Senior Fellow, will participate at the FCC’s public workshop on broadband consumer privacy. He also prepared written comments expanding on his thoughts. Professor Swire summarizes his research as follows: First, I examine the effect of the Section 222(a) definition of “proprietary information” as compared with the Section 222(c) definition of […]
Comparing the Data Broker Bill to the Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights
Considering the privacy concerns raised by data brokers, we thought it would be useful to compare how data brokers are treated under Senator Edward Markey’s recent data broker bill, which has considerable support from privacy and consumer advocates (as well as Senators Blumenthal, Franken, and Whitehouse), and under the Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights. The different receptions […]
Beacons in Airports Provide Information for Travelers
Readers know we support responsible beacon technology practices. Today’s story illustrates how airports can provide real-time updates about travel plans, accommodations, and flights to travelers …
Travis LeBlanc on the FCC's New Privacy Role
At today’s FCBA brown bag lunch, FCC Enforcement Bureau Chief Travis LeBlanc discussed the Commission’s recent entrance into privacy enforcement and fielded questions as to what companies might do to avoid running afoul of the Enforcement Bureau. LeBlanc emphasized the innovation continues to outpace regulators, noting that much of the Commission’s investigative and enforcement work […]
Barclays Launches Beacons to Help Disabled Customers
Barclays just launched a beacon technology system in a UK branch to help disabled customers with their accessibility needs. The service, which requires customers to download an app and …
Data Protection Law Errors in Google Spain LS, Google Inc. v. Agencia Espanola de Proteccion de Datos, Mario Costeja Gonzalez
The following is a guest post by Scott D. Goss, Senior Privacy Counsel, Qualcomm Incorporated, addressing the recent “Right to be Forgotten” decision by the European Court of Justice. There has been quite a bit of discussion surrounding the European Court of Justice’s judgment in Google Spain LS, Google Inc. v. Agencia Espanola de Proteccion de […]
Wall Street Journal: MLA-Driven Approach to Airport Wait Times
On Wednesday, The Wall Street Journal published an article about long lines at U.S. customs in airports around the country, and what airlines are doing to shorten them. They include a spreadsheet where you can see the kind information that’s been collected thanks to Mobile Location Analytics (“MLA”) technology. This is just one example of […]
Judge Narrows Subpoena For New Yorkers’ Airbnb Records in Privacy-Protective Ruling
Late last fall we posted about Attorney General Schneiderman’s troubling attempts to subpoena data on 15,000 New York City-based users of Airbnb, the service best known for allowing people to rent out their spare bedrooms or their homes while on vacation. Schneiderman was trying to find landlords who were renting their apartments out long-term through […]