Welcome to Socially Aware

Socially Aware is devoted to the law and business of social media, proactively addressing emerging issues and keeping our clients informed of new developments. We cover fields such as artificial intelligence, privacy and data security, Section 230, intellectual property, and much more.

August 17, 2015 - E-Commerce, Terms of Use, Fraud
Federal District Court: “Browsewrap” Terms and Conditions Provide Sufficient Notice to Defeat False Advertising Class Action
By: Aaron P. Rubin
Websites sometimes present their terms of use (“TOU”) to users merely by including a link to those TOU on the website without requiring users to affirmatively accept the terms by, for example, checking a box or clicking an “I accept” button. As we have
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August 10, 2015 - First Amendment, Online Reviews, Litigation
Washington State Court Refuses to Unmask Anonymous Online Reviewer
By: Aaron P. Rubin
In a precedent-setting ruling, the Washington Court of Appeals in Thomson v. Doe refused to grant a motion to compel brought by a defamation plaintiff who had subpoenaed the lawyer-review site Avvo.com seeking the identity of an anonymous online reviewer, holding that, for a
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July 27, 2015 - FCC, Compliance
FCC Clarifies Its Interpretations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, Provoking Strong Objections From the Business Community
By: Tiffany Cheung and Julie O'Neill
On July 10, 2015, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released a 140-page Omnibus Declaratory Ruling and Order in response to more than two dozen petitions from businesses, attorneys general, and consumers seeking clarity on how the FCC interprets the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA).
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July 22, 2015 - First Amendment, Status Updates
Status Updates: AZ’s anti-revenge-porn law scrapped; civil rights claim against blogging prosecutor dismissed; Match buys PlentyOfFish
By: Aaron P. Rubin
There oughta be a law? As we’ve reported previously, states all around the country have enacted laws that criminalize the posting of revenge porn—nude photographs published without the subject’s consent, often by an ex-lover seeking retribution. To avoid running afoul of the First Amendment,
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July 19, 2015 - Terms of Use, Mobile
Mobile App Legal Terms & Conditions: Six Key Considerations
By: Anthony M. Ramirez
For corporations, the mobile app is today’s website. Back in the late 1990s, no self-respecting company, no matter how stodgy and old-fashioned, wanted to be without a website. Today, the same is true with mobile apps. It doesn’t matter what industry a company is
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July 17, 2015 - Privacy, Employment Law, Compliance
Employer Access to Employee Social Media: Applicant Screening, “Friend” Requests and Workplace Investigations
By: Melissa M. Crespo
A recent survey of hiring managers and human resource professionals reports that more than 43 percent of employers use social networking sites to research job candidates. This interest in social networking does not end when the candidate is hired: To the contrary, companies are seeking
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July 15, 2015 - Bankruptcy, Privacy
“Never Say Never”: Lessons From RadioShack’s Sale of Customer Information
When a bankrupt company’s most valuable assets include consumer information, a tension arises between bankruptcy policy aimed at maximizing asset value, on the one hand, and privacy laws designed to protect consumers’ personal information, on the other. Such tension played out recently in the
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July 09, 2015 - E-Commerce, Status Updates
Status Updates: Pinterest’s new purchasing feature; Driving while social; and a small country’s Facebook ban
Pin money. The social media site Pinterest, a 5-year-old Internet powerhouse with an $11 billion valuation , is implementing another feature intended to bring in some cash : Buyable Pins. Soon, the site’s users—who, according to demographics reports, are often affluent women—will be able
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July 07, 2015 - Status Updates, Copyright, Mobile, IP
Status Updates: Artist sues Pinterest; texting for teens without data plans; quit smoking with social media
By: Aaron P. Rubin
Pin pain. As a primarily visual social media platform whose self-described purpose is to help users bookmark and save “ good stuff you find anywhere around the web ,” Pinterest has raised copyright infringement questions since it became explosively popular in 2012. In many
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July 07, 2015 - Internet of Things, Marketing, Privacy, Cloud Computing, Wearable Computers
Toward a Grand Unifying Theory of Today’s Tech Trends
As a technology law blogger and co-editor of Socially Aware , I monitor emerging developments in information technology. What’s hot in IT today? Any shortlist would have to include social media, mobile, wearable technology, the Internet of Things (IoT), cloud computing and big data.
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Welcome to Socially Aware

Federal District Court: “Browsewrap” Terms and Conditions Provide Sufficient Notice to Defeat False Advertising Class Action

By: Aaron P. Rubin

Washington State Court Refuses to Unmask Anonymous Online Reviewer

By: Aaron P. Rubin

FCC Clarifies Its Interpretations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, Provoking Strong Objections From the Business Community

By: Tiffany Cheung and Julie O'Neill

Status Updates: AZ’s anti-revenge-porn law scrapped; civil rights claim against blogging prosecutor dismissed; Match buys PlentyOfFish

By: Aaron P. Rubin

Mobile App Legal Terms & Conditions: Six Key Considerations

By: Anthony M. Ramirez

Employer Access to Employee Social Media: Applicant Screening, “Friend” Requests and Workplace Investigations

By: Melissa M. Crespo

“Never Say Never”: Lessons From RadioShack’s Sale of Customer Information

Status Updates: Pinterest’s new purchasing feature; Driving while social; and a small country’s Facebook ban

Status Updates: Artist sues Pinterest; texting for teens without data plans; quit smoking with social media

By: Aaron P. Rubin

Toward a Grand Unifying Theory of Today’s Tech Trends