Crazy SOPA-Like Attempt to Hold International Banks Liable for Pharmacy Spam Fails on Jurisdiction Grounds–Unspam v. Chernuk
[By Venkat Balasubramani with comments from Eric Goldman] Unspam Technologies, Inc. v. Chernuk, 2013 WL 1849080 (4th Cir. May 4, 2013) We’ve mentioned “Project Honeypot,” the efforts of a company (founded by Matthew Prince) to track down and prosecute spammers….
Why You’ll Soon Be Paying Sales Taxes on All of Your Internet Purchases–Amazon v. NY Taxation Department (Forbes Cross-Post)
By Eric Goldman In the 1992 case Quill v. North Dakota, the U.S. Supreme Court said an out-of-state retailer can’t be obligated to collect sales taxes from buyers in states where the retailer lacks a physical presence. In those situations,…
No Claim Based on Perez Hilton’s Publication of Unsolicited but Inflammatory Reader Email – Wargo v. Lavandeira
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] Wargo v. Lavandeira, JAMS Arbitration No. 1220041183 (Mar. 24, 2013) Lavandeira runs the popular Perez Hilton website, which has been involved in its fair share of legal disputes. In response to an item (presumably about Angelina…
FTC Warns Nordstrom Over Tweetup Freebies
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] The FTC conducted an investigation on Nordstrom’s marketing and promotion in connection with a “tweetup” held in Boise. Apparently Nordstrom provided free gifts to “influencers”, including $50 gift cards to Nordstrom Rack. [Sadly, I did not…
Judge Boots Privacy Lawsuit Against Pandora but Plaintiffs Can Replead – Yunker v. Pandora
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] Yunker v Pandora Media, Inc., 2013 US Dist LEXIS 42691 (N.D. Cal. Mar. 26, 2013) Pandora has been sued before for allegedly revealing listening preferences, but this is a more run-of-the-mill privacy lawsuit against Pandora. Pandora…
The Supreme Court’s Kirtsaeng Ruling Is Good News for Consumers, but the First Sale Doctrine Is Still Doomed–Kirtsaeng v. John Wiley (Forbes Cross-Post)
By Eric Goldman Kirtsaeng v. John Wiley & Sons, No. 11–697 (U.S. Supreme Court March 19, 2013). Prior blog post of the Second Circuit ruling in the case. In Kirtsaeng v. John Wiley & Sons ($JW-A), the U.S. Supreme Court ruled…
Another Credit Card Breach Lawsuit Fails – Willingham v. Global Payments
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] Willingham v. Global Payments, Inc., 12-CV-01157 (N.D. Ga. Feb 5, 2013) (case later dismissed by the parties) This is a data breach lawsuit arising out of an incident in which credit card information was purloined from…
IMDB’s Disclosure of Actress’s Age Will Go To Trial – Hoang v. Amazon
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani with a comment by Eric] Hoang v. IMDb.com, C11-1709MJP (W.D. Wash. Mar. 18, 2013) We’ve blogged about this dispute—involving an actress’s attempt to hold IMDb liable for publishing her age against her wishes—before. The court recently…
Court Rejects Attempt to Hold Software Company Liable for Surveillance Conducted by Its Customer – Luis v. Zang
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] Luis v. Zang, 12 cv 629 (S.D. Oh. Mar. 5, 2013) Divorces have spawned some of the most interesting privacy disputes, such as the cases involving whether GPS surveillance of a vehicle violated one spouse’s privacy…
Court Dismisses Data Breach Lawsuit Against LinkedIn Based on Compromised Passwords – In re LinkedIn User Privacy Litigation
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] In re LinkedIn User Privacy Litigation, 2013 WL 844291 (N.D. Cal. Mar. 5, 2013) [pdf] LinkedIn suffered a data breach in 2012. Someone allegedly posted 6.5 million passwords and email addresses from LinkedIn users on the…