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.

November 21, 2022 - Section 230 Safe Harbor, Supreme Court
Ninth Circuit Interprets FOSTA Restriction on Section 230 Narrowly
On October 24, 2022, the Ninth Circuit ruled that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act shielded Reddit Inc. from liability under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPA). The court considered the text of a 2018 amendment to Section 230, known as the
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May 17, 2022 - Social Media Policy
Coalition of State Attorneys General Investigate Tiktok’s Potential Harm to Children and Teens
By: Aaron P. Rubin, Julie O'Neill and Anthony M. Ramirez
In early March 2022, a coalition of state attorneys general launched an investigation of TikTok to determine whether the social media platform, which is popular among young Americans, causes long-term harm to them. Initiated in the Massachusetts attorney general’s office and led by Massachusetts
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April 04, 2022 - Advertising, Digital Content, E-Commerce, Privacy, Social Media Policy
Social Links: Behavioral targeting under scrutiny from lawmakers
By: Aaron P. Rubin, Julie O'Neill and Anthony M. Ramirez
Lawmakers on Capitol Hill continue to take aim at social media platforms that collect and use personal information that build algorithms to target individuals across a variety of dimensions when users engage with those platforms, most prominently in the form of advertising and other
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January 20, 2022 - Privacy
Forgot to Cancel? Pay Attention to Recent Auto-Renewal Law Changes
By: Julie O'Neill
As subscription models have gained exponential traction, legislatures are clamoring to ensure that their auto-renewal laws keep up with novel consumer protection issues. Several states have introduced or revised their auto-renewal laws, and the Federal Trade Commission has affirmed its commitment to enforce against
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December 21, 2021 - Digital Content, E-Commerce, Privacy, Social Media Policy, Compliance
Facebook rebrands as “Meta;” disables facial recognition capabilities
By: Aaron P. Rubin, Julie O'Neill and Anthony M. Ramirez
In late October, Facebook announced that it would change its name to Meta , signaling a shift of the social media giant’s focus toward the metaverse , a virtual space where social media, gaming, augmented reality, virtual reality, and cryptocurrencies converge and allow people
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December 15, 2021 - Social Media Policy
District Court Enjoins Controversial Texas Social Media “Censorship” Law
By: Aaron P. Rubin
Over the past several years, Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, the federal law that provides social media platforms with immunity from liability for user content and was once hailed as “ the law that gave us the modern Internet ,” has gone
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November 15, 2021 - Advertising, Class Actions, Big Data, Copyright
Social Links: Embedding social media posts can be considered copyright infringement…but is it?
By: Aaron P. Rubin, Julie O'Neill and Anthony M. Ramirez
Social Links is our ongoing series here at Socially Aware that rounds up current developments at the intersection of social media, policy, research, and the law. Embedding social media posts can be considered copyright infringement…but is it? A Manhattan federal judge ruled in August
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October 12, 2021 - European Union, Contracts, Compliance
New “Two-Click Cancellation” Button – German Exceptionalism for Subscription Terminations
By: Kristina Ehle and Stephan Kreß
As part of the new Fair Consumer Contracts Act , [ Gesetz für Faire Verbraucherverträge ; published in the Federal Gazette (Part I) no. 53/2021, p. 3433 et seq., full text publicly available ( in German ) Germany will soon require specific cancellation/termination mechanisms
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August 17, 2021 - Social Media Policy, User-Generated Content
Clubhouse faces steep challenges in spite of new features and expanded access
Clubhouse , the former invitation-only social media darling that captured the attention of investors, social media early adopters, and competitors since its introduction in April 2020, now faces significant challenges as it strives to remain relevant and attract new and engaged users. Since our
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June 17, 2021 - European Union, Contracts, Financial Institutions, Compliance
Some Things Never Change… Including, Apparently, T&Cs in Germany
By: Kristina Ehle
With a judgment dated April 27 and published on June 4, 2021, the German Federal Court (Bundesgerichtshof – the “Court”) declared unfair and therefore illegal and unenforceable a common way to make changes to terms and conditions (“T&Cs”) used vis-à-vis consumers in Germany. For
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