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By Executive Order, the Trump Administration recently reversed an Obama Administration order aimed at protecting consumer’s personal information from use by their Internet Service Provider (ISP). ISPrior to the Trump’s EO, ISPs were required to get customer’s consent before using or selling their browsing habits, online shopping habits, financial information, etc. The reversal of Obama’s protection order has caused a resurgence of interest in VPN services. In theory, using a VPN service creates an encrypted tunnel between your device and the service provider, thus keeping your browsing habits and personal information private from your ISP. However, a paper published in early 2015 by researchers at Sapienza University of Rome and Queen Mary University of London, found that 11 of the 14 providers they tested leaked customer information.
Continue Reading Virtual Private Network (VPN) Providers: How Private Are They?

This year has been a busy year for education law in the area of data privacy. Educational institutions continue to be a rich target for hackers. Additionally, there were some important developments in the interpretation of Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) as it applies to educational institutions.

  • In December, DeVry University Settled with the FTC for $100 million over allegations that it misled prospective students with ads that promised higher employment success and income upon graduation.
  • Also in December, UMass Amherst settled with the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) for $650,000 for HIPAA violations related to a malware infection that led to the release of names, addresses, Social Security numbers, dates of birth, health insurance information, diagnoses, and procedure codes.
  • In November, a hacker gained access to 1,213 records of applicants to the University of Wisconsin Law School.
  • On September 14, 2016, the Department of Education (DOE) issued a “Dear Colleague Letter” providing guidance on the application of FERPA to the disclosure of student medical records in the context of litigation.

Continue Reading Top Ten Education Developments, Breaches, and Settlements of 2016

As cyber-attacks involving the global payment system SWIFT increase in frequency abroad, U.S. regulators are discussing steps designed to protect against similar attacks on U.S. financial institutions. The Federal Reserve, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. issued a joint letter last week to Representative Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) of…

Yesterday, President Obama, by Executive Order, established the Commission on Enhancing National Cybersecurity within the Department of Commerce.

The commission will be comprised of up to 12 members including “those with knowledge about or experience in cybersecurity, the digital economy, national security and law enforcement, corporate governance, risk management, information technology (IT), privacy, identity management,…