Internet Governance
Facebook Announces Changes To Ad Platform: After settling multiple lawsuits alleging that it engaged in discriminatory advertising by allowing advertisers to select which users could view ads based on characteristics such as age, gender, and zip code, Facebook announced that it will make changes to its ad platform by the end of the year.
Google Fined One-and-a-half Billion Euros: The EU punished Google for the third time since 2017 for antitrust violations involving the terms under which Google licensed the use of its search bar to third-party websites; the terms required the third party websites to display a disproportionate amount of text ads from Google’s own advertising service over those from competing digital advertising companies.
Privacy
Facebook To Use AI To Combat Revenge Porn: The AI technology will be used to detect “near nude images or videos that are shared without permission,” and will purportedly allow Facebook to filter such content even before it is reported.
Information Security & Cyberthreats
MySpace Loses A Decade’s Worth Of User-Uploaded Data: In a recent server migration project, Myspace lost over a decade’s worth of user-uploaded photos, audio files, and videos; the website issued a notice to inform users that files uploaded more than three years ago “may no longer be available on or from MySpace.”
Intellectual Property
Peddling Past Copyright Laws: A coalition of ten music publishers has sued indoor bike company Peloton for allegedly violating copyright laws by using music by popular artists within its exercise videos without obtaining proper licenses.
Free Expression & Censorship
Websites Blocked For Hosting New Zealand Shooting Video: Internet service providers in Australia and New Zealand have temporarily blocked websites such as 4chan and 8chan that hosted videos of last week’s mass shooting in New Zealand; while blocking requests normally come from law enforcement or courts, the service providers voluntarily blocked access to the websites to limit the spread of the sensitive video.
Practice Note
SCOTUS Passes On Consumer Privacy Harms In Frank v. Gaos: In a per curiam opinion, the Court vacated and remanded the case (which addresses the legality of certain cy pres awards) to the Ninth Circuit for consideration in light of the Court’s 2016 Spokeo v. Robbins decision, which found that a statutory violation alone was insufficient to confer standing, and that plaintiffs must instead prove concrete injury-in-fact.
On the Lighter Side
Crypto Keepers: Payment platform Square’s newest employees will have the option of being paid in Bitcoin.
Announcements
Job and Fellowship Opportunities
From time-to-time, CLIP-ings will highlight career opportunities in the information law field. Please note the following:
The New York State Office of the Attorney General’s Bureau of Internet & Technology is hiring a new Assistant Attorney General in NYC. The Bureau of Internet & Technology investigates and litigates cutting-edge law and technology issues (e.g., bots, data security/breach, privacy, online safety, consumer protection, and more). The Bureau seeks an experienced, tech-savvy litigator to join their NYC team. The ideal candidate has a technical education or background, or experience working in/with technology.
For further information about the post, please click here.
Joel R. Reidenberg Stanley D. and Nikki Waxberg Chair and Professor of Law Founding Academic Director, Fordham CLIP Tom Norton Executive Director, Fordham CLIP | |
| Praatika Prasad Quinn Nicholas D’Isa Editorial Fellows, Fordham CLIP |