privacy News

Viewpoint: California’s Latest Insurance Privacy Bill Would Add Layer of Regulation

California lawmakers are once again turning their attention to consumer privacy—this time with a laser focus on the insurance sector. At a moment when insurance companies are already navigating a minefield of data privacy laws, the newly proposed Senate Bill …

California Bill Seeks to Beef up Consumer Privacy Protections for Insurance

A new bill introduced in California aims to increase transparency and accountability in California’s insurance market by bolstering consumer privacy protections and establishing a privacy rights framework for insurance licensees and their third-party service providers. Senate Bill 354, the Insurance …

Lawsuit Accuses Amazon of Secretly Tracking Consumers Through Cellphones

Amazon.com was sued on Wednesday by consumers who accused the retailing giant of secretly tracking their movements through their cellphones, and selling data it collects. According to a proposed class action in San Francisco federal court, Amazon obtained “backdoor access” …

Damages Upheld for Man Whose Ex-Girlfriend Shared Nude Photo Without Permission

A Massachusetts man who sued his ex-girlfriend over her sharing an unflattering nude photo of him and accessing his personal online accounts without permission has had his $10,280 court award upheld. In December 2023, a Bristol County trial judge entered …

Texas Lawsuit Alleges Allstate Illegally Collects Driver Data

The State of Texas on Monday filed a lawsuit against Allstate, alleging the insurance company illegally collects driver data through secretly embedded software in mobile apps and then uses the data to justify raising Texans’ insurance rates. Texas Attorney General …

California Teen Suspected of Being a Member of Scattered Spider Hacking Gang

An accused teenage hacker who was arrested last month in California is suspected of being a member of the notorious cybercrime group Scattered Spider, according to several people familiar with the matter. U.S. prosecutors charged Remington Ogletree on Oct. 30 …

Zoom Offers $18 Million to Settle SEC Privacy Probe From 2020

Zoom Communications Inc. has offered $18 million to settle a four-year-old US Securities and Exchange Commission probe related to its privacy policies and communications. In the most recent quarter, the company recorded an $18 million expense for a “tentative settlement …

Meta Pushes Back Against FTC Effort to Toughen Privacy Order

Meta Platforms Inc. rebuffed the Federal Trade Commission’s plans to modify a 2020 privacy settlement with the company, arguing that such a move would need approval from a federal court. A Meta lawyer told the FTC’s five commissioners at a …

Top EU Privacy Regulator Opens Probe Into Google’s AI Compliance

The top EU privacy regulator opened an inquiry on Thursday into whether search engine giant Google adequately protected European Union users’ personal data before using it to help develop its foundational AI Model. Ireland’s Data Protection Commission (DPC), the lead …

Maine Regulators Reject Letting Utility Report Suspect Marijuana Growers to Police

Maine utility regulators unanimously rejected on Tuesday an electric utility’s proposal to proactively report high consumption that signals a marijuana growing operation to law enforcement officials in an attempt to aid police crackdown on illicit operations. The three-member Public Utilities …