The Commercial Electronic Mail Act (CEMA) is a Washington State law that prohibits sending state residents a commercial email misrepresenting the sender’s identity. A commercial email promotes real property, goods, or services for sale or lease. A recent Washington Supreme Court opinion held that this prohibition includes the use of any false or misleading information
Enforcement + Litigation
FTC Settles With accessiBe For Misleading Statements About WCAG Compliance
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced on April 22, 2025, that it has approved a settlement entered into a Final Order with accessiBe, which claimed its plug-in product, accessWidget, “can make any website compliant with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).” The settlement includes the payment of $1 million and requires accessiBe to refrain from “making…
Breaches Within Breaches: Contractual Obligations After a Security Incident
We often cover consumer class action complaints against companies regarding the privacy and security of personal information. However, litigation can also arise from alleged breach of contract between two companies. This week, we will analyze a medical diagnostic testing laboratory’s April 2025 complaint against its managed services provider for its alleged failure to satisfy its…
The FTC BOTS Act – Leveling the Ticketing Field
On March 31, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order (EO 14254) titled “Combating Unfair Practices in the Live Entertainment Market.” EO 14254 directs the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to, amongst other provisions, rigorously enforce the Better Online Ticket Sales Act (BOTS Act or the Act) and address unfair ticket scalping practices.
Overview of the…
EdTech and Privacy of Student Information: A Case Study
On March 27, 2025, a class action lawsuit was filed against the education technology (EdTech) company Instructure, the parent company of Canvas, a popular learning management system. The complaint alleges that Instructure violated children’s federal and state privacy rights. According to the complaint, Instructure states that it collects various account information about children, including name…
California Cryobank Hit with Lawsuit over Sperm Donor Databank Breach
California Cryobank, LLC, the largest sperm bank in the country, faces a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California over an April 2024 data breach. Cryobank provides frozen donor sperm and specialized reproductive health care services, including egg and embryo storage.
Cryobank notified the affected individuals this month that it…
Pennsylvania Teacher’s Union Faces Class Action over Data Breach
The Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA) faces a class action resulting from a July 2024 data breach. The proposed class consists of current and former members of the union as well as PSEA employees and their family members. The lawsuit alleges that the union was negligent and breached its fiduciary duty when it suffered a…
AppLovin & Its AI: A Lesson in Accuracy
Last week, we explored a recent data breach class action and the litigation risk of such lawsuits. Companies need to be aware of litigation risk not only arising from data breaches, but also from shareholder class actions related to privacy concerns.
On March 5, 2025, a class action securities lawsuit was filed against AppLovin Corporation…
Utilities Petition FCC for Updates to TCPA Guidelines to Allow “Demand Response” Calls and Texts
Edison Electric Institute (EEI), an association that represents all U.S. investor-owned electric companies, petitioned the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to permit calls and texts under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) without prior express consent for “demand response” communications. A prior FCC ruling clarified the FCC’s policies towards the types of calls and texts from…
Skin360 App Can’t Escape Scrutiny under Illinois Biometric Law
A federal district court has denied a motion by Johnson & Johnson Consumer Inc. (JJCI) to dismiss a second amended complaint alleging it violated the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) by collecting and storing biometric information through its Neutrogena Skin 360 beauty app without consumers’ informed consent or knowledge. The plaintiffs also allege that…