Data Security & Privacy

The Political Irony of ‘Net Neutrality’

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In a 3-2 vote today, the Federal Communications Commission announced it would begin to regulate the Internet, effectively prohibiting Internet Service Providers (ISPs) from discriminating against any website or online service traffic.  Seeing the futility of politicizing a topic that is so new to legislators, Democrat and Republican lawmakers simply punted for now on the debate. […]

Data Security & Privacy

Federal Trade Commission Demands ‘Data Brokers’ Be More Transparent

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Several news outlets reported yesterday that the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) is urging Congress to demand that data brokers tell consumers more about their trade practices in how they collect and use consumer information. Data brokers are companies that assemble digital profiles on nearly every U.S. consumer by gathering information from credit- and debit-card transactions, […]

Data Security & Privacy

Antivirus Software Companies Acquiesce to Hackers – Refocus Business Models

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The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday that several software antivirus companies are reinventing their business models after decades of trying to prevent hackers from penetrating its customers IT infrastructure.  According to Mr. Brian Dye, Senior Vice President of Information Security, at Symantec, Corp., the antivirus “is dead” from a money-maker perspective.  Rather than try to thwart hackers, […]

Data Security & Privacy

The Purchase of Cyber-Insurance Increases, But Consider the Scope of the Coverage Before Buying

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The sales of cyber-insurance policies has spiked sharply this year, mainly due to the increased attention and scrutiny of massive data breaches from Target and Neiman Marcus over the last holiday season. Also, in what was once an uncommon occurrence, banks are now suing retailers who have been victimized by hackers accessing mission-critical data. These […]

Data Security & Privacy

The Final Four of NSA Phone Surveillance

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In a report published today in The Wall Street Journal, the Obama White House was presented with the final four recommendations for restructuring the National Security Agency’s (“NSA”) controversial bulk collection of data.  As one would imagine, none of the four options available are perfect, but they include: (1) Abolishment of the entire program itself; (2) have […]

Business Law

FTC Security Guidelines for Mobile App Developers

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In response to the thousands of mobile applications hitting the market that often rely on consumer data (i.e. contact information, location, photos, etc.), the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) released a suggested list of security guidelines for mobile app developers to follow when designing a program. While a no one-size-fits-all checklist can exist, the FTC views […]