April-May 2010 Quick Links Part 1 (IP Edition)
By Eric Goldman [Note: I just got back from the Netherlands, where I had extremely limited Internet connectivity, so sorry for my absence in the last week (although you were in good hands with Venkat). I will be posting more…
Facebook Messages/Wall Posts, Civil Discovery, and the Stored Communications Act — Crispin v. Audigier
[Post by Venkat] Crispin v. Audigier, Case No. CV 09-09509 MMM (JEMx) (May 26, 2010) With the proliferation of the use of social network profile evidence, it was only a matter of time before a court dealt with the issue…
EFF Weighs in on Facebook v. Power Ventures — Facebook v. Power Ventures
[Post by Venkat] Facebook v. Power Ventures, Case No. 5:08-cv-05780 JW (N.D. Cal.) (Facebook Motion) (EFF Amicus Brief) Facebook and Power Ventures have been locked in a dispute over whether Power Ventures can access Facebook’s website and network outside of…
Beacon Class Action Lawyers Awarded $2.3MM in Fees — Lane v. Facebook
[Post by Venkat] Lane v. Facebook, Case No. 08-3845 RS (N.D. Cal.) (Order re Attorney Fees) The lawsuit over Facebook’s ill-fated Beacon program generated three lawsuits, a lot of wrangling by class action lawyers, and more than a few blog…
Web-based Email Bombardment Campaign Does Not Amount to a Violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act — Pulte Homes, Inc. v. LiUNA
[Post by Venkat] Pulte Homes, Inc. v. Laborers’ International Union of North America, et al. (E.D. Mich.) (May 12, 2010) Background: Pulte Homes, “the largest new home builder in the United States” terminated eight employees. Defendant Laborers’ International Union of…
FTC Busts Check-Issuing Website for Unfair Practices–FTC v. Qchex
By Eric Goldman Federal Trade Commission v. Neovi, Inc., 09-55093 (9th Cir. May 14, 2010) Qchex allowed registered users to create and send checks via a website. Initially, users could submit bank account information and payee information, and Qchex would…
4th Cir.: No Expectation of Privacy in Internet and Phone Subscriber Info — U.S. v. Bynum
[Post by Venkat] United States v. Bynum, Case No. 08-4207 (4th Cir.) (May 5, 2010) The FBI observed Marques Bynum’s activities in a Yahoo! chat room. Bynum had uploaded photos of children engaged in sex acts. The FBI served an…
Internet Access Provider & Blocklist Publishers Denied 230(c)(2) Immunity for Anti-Spam Efforts
By Eric Goldman Smith v. Trusted Universal Standards in Electronic Transactions, Inc., 2010 WL 1799456 (D.N.J. May 4, 2010) It’s usually a drag to read opinions in pro se lawsuits. Most of the time, the litigant gets flattened mercilessly. Occasionally,…
Online Publishers, Advertising and Privacy Considerations
By Eric Goldman I recently spoke at OMMA Global on a panel entitled “Can Publishers Take Ownership of Privacy?” This panel focused on the role of online publishers in the marketing-and-privacy discussions. Most of the privacy angst has focused on…
Yahoo! Chat Logs Admitted Over Defendant’s Objections Based on Eavesdropping Statute — People v. Nakai
[Post by Venkat] State v. Singh Nakai, 2010 Cal. App. LEXIS 446 (Cal. App.) (Div. 2) (April 2, 2010) Division two of the California Court of Appeals recently rejected a defendant’s argument that California’s eavesdropping statute precluded the admission of…