Socially Aware

February 14, 2024 - Advertising, Compliance, Free Speech, Privacy, Social Media Policy
Court Prohibits Ohio’s AG From Enforcing Social Media Parental Notification Act
By: Lawrence W. Gallick and Aaron P. Rubin
A court in the Southern District of Ohio has issued a preliminary injunction against enforcement of the Social Media Parental Notification Act, an Ohio law that would require social media platforms to obtain parental consent for users under 16. NetChoice LLC, an industry group
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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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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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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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September 11, 2019 - FTC, Data Security, Privacy, COPPA, Compliance
The Company Who Cried “General Audience”: Google and YouTube to Pay $170 Million for Alleged COPPA Violations
By: Julie O'Neill
Last week, the Federal Trade Commission made clear that child-directed parts of an otherwise general audience service will subject the operator of the service to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). Just six months after the FTC’s record-setting settlement against TikTok, the FTC announced
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April 16, 2019 - Advertising, First Amendment, European Union, Influencer Marketing, Copyright, Free Speech, Compliance, Litigation
Social Links: An EU law to protect copyright owners online; collecting biometric data without running afoul of the law; influencers’ attempts to appear more authentic
By: Anthony M. Ramirez
A new law in Australia makes a social media company’s failure to remove “abhorrent violent material” from its platform punishable by significant fines. The law also states that the executives at social media companies who fail to remove the content could be sentenced to
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March 12, 2018 - First Amendment, Protected Speech, Privacy, Online Contracts, Copyright, Defamation, Compliance, IP, Litigation
Social Links: Inline link to tweet with photo could constitute copyright infringement; proposed California legislation could restrict website operators’ efforts to have minors consent to terms of use
By: Aaron P. Rubin
In a decision that has generated considerable controversy, a federal court in New York has held that the popular practice of embedding tweets into websites and blogs can result in copyright infringement. Plaintiff Justin Goldman had taken a photo of NFL quarterback Tom Brady,
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January 29, 2018 - Blockchain, DMCA, Influencer Marketing, Stored Communications Act, Cybersecurity, Compliance
2017: Our Greatest Hits
By: Aaron P. Rubin
Last year we covered a wide range of online legal and business subjects intended for readers ranging from Internet entrepreneurs to social media marketers, from online shoppers to e-tailers, from networkers to influencers (and the brands that pay them). The topics of our blog
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January 23, 2018 - Advertising, Endorsement Guides, Electronic Contracts, Influencer Marketing, Marketing, Privacy, Social Media Policy, Event, User-Generated Content, Compliance, Online Endorsements
Social Media 2018: Addressing Corporate Risks
As Socially Aware readers know, social media is transforming the way companies interact with consumers. Learn how to make the most of these online opportunities while minimizing your company’s legal risks at Practising Law Institute’s (PLI) 2018 Social Media conference, to be held in San
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January 18, 2018 - Internet of Things, Data Security, Privacy, Cybersecurity, Product Liability, Compliance
Connected Devices Bring New Product Liability Challenges
By: Erin M. Bosman and Julie Y. Park
“My Google Home Mini was inadvertently spying on me 24/7 due to a hardware flaw,” wrote a tech blogger who purchased Google Inc.’s latest internet of things (IoT) device. Following the incident, a pact of consumer advocacy groups insisted the U.S. Consumer Product Safety
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