Category: Countries

New Mexico Attorney General files suit against “angry birds” developer

30. August 2021

The developer of the popular app “Angry Birds” is currently under investigation by the New Mexican Attorney General.

On August 25, 2021, New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas filed charges against Rovio Entertainment. The company is alleged to have violated the federal Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and to have intentionally collected the data of players under the age of 13. One of the accusations is that the data was processed for commercial purposes.

COPPA requires app developers to inform parents of children of the appropriate age about their data collection practices. Further, it is required to obtain parental consent for the collection of personal data from children under 13 and to properly record that consent.

The Attorney General’s complaint alleges that children’s data was disclosed to third parties for the purpose of targeted advertising. The data is analyzed, vermacred to third parties, and from then on is also available to an even wider circle of interests. The Angry Bird developer is also said to have failed to obtain parental consent and to have proclaimed it. The privacy policy was also said to be misleading. The company however stated that the Angry Birds app was not for children. Nevertheless, according to the authorities the developers are aware that the application is downloaded and played by a young audience in particular. Even in the event that the privacy policy is not specifically marketed to minors, however, the company must take measures under COPPA to minimize the risk to children.

The procedure may entail civil penalties, restitution, and other relief.

Children’s data also receive special protection within the EU. According to Art. 8 of the GDPR, this protection even applies up to the age of 16. However, the state legislators are free to set this limit at the age of 13.

Case dismissed by UK High Court after DSG data breach

20. August 2021

On 30 July 2021, in Warren v DSG Retail Ltd [2021] EWHC 2168 (QB), the UK High Court handed down a judgment that the claimant could not (for the time being) recover damages for data protection breaches.

The litigation was based on the following case: In 2018, DSG Retail Limited (“DSG”) was the victim of a cyber-attack. Hackers had gained access to DSG’s systems and installed malware. DSG was fined £500,000 (EUR 530,000) by the UK Data Protection Authority for failing to take adequate technical and organisational security measures. The company is accused of breaching the seventh data protection principle (“DPP7”) of the Data Protection Act 1998 (“DPA”). This fine has been appealed and is currently under legal review.

This cyber attack also affected the data of the plaintiff Darren Lee Warren.

He based the lawsuit on the theories of breach of confidence (“BoC”), misuse of private information (“MPI”), breach of the Data Protection Agreement (DPA) and common law negligence. The data breach affected data such as name, address, phone number, date of birth and email address.

Warren, however, failed to convince the court with any of his arguments. DSG successfully defended itself against the claim by arguing that it had not itself committed an active unlawful act, but that the breach was caused by an external attack. It also argued that negligence claims were not possible if breaches of the DPA were alleged at the same time. In addition, the DSG argued that a negligence claim required the assertion of compensable damages. Warren was not able to assert such damages.

However, the question of whether a claim for breach of DPP7 could be affirmed was stayed pending a final decision on DSG’s appeal of the ICO fine. Nevertheless, the claim was dismissed on all other points.

Amex fined for sending four million unlawful emails

15. July 2021

American Express Service Europe Limited (Amex) has received a £ 90,000 fine from the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) for sending over four million unwanted marketing emails to customers.

The reason for the investigation by UK’s supervisory authority were complaints from Amex customers, which claimed to have been receiving marketing emails even though they had not given their consent to do so. The emails, sent as a part of a campaign, contained information regarding benefits of online shopping, optimal use of the card and encouragement to download the Amex app. According to Amex, the emails were rather about “servicing”, not “marketing”. The company insisted that customers would be disadvantaged if they were not aware of the campaigns and that the emails were a requirement of the credit agreements.

The ICO did not share this view. In its opinion, the emails were aimed at inducing customers to make purchases with their cards in return for a £ 50 benefit, and thus “deliberately” for “financial gain”. This constitutes a marketing activity which, without a valid consent, violates Regulation 22 of the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003. The consents and therefore the legal basis were not given in this case.

The ICO Head of Investigations pointed out how important it is for companies to know the differences between a service email and a marketing email to ensure that email communications with customers are compliant with the law. While service messages contain routine information such as changes in terms and conditions or notices of service interruptions, direct marketing is any communication of promotional or marketing material directed to specific individuals.

An Amex spokesperson assured that the company takes customers’ marketing preferences very seriously and has already taken steps to address the concerns raised.

Colorado Privacy Act officially enacted into Law

14. July 2021

On July 8, 2021, the state of Colorado officially enacted the Colorado Privacy Act (CPA), which makes it the third state to have a comprehensive data privacy law, following California and Virginia. The Act will go into effect on July 1, 2023, with some specific provisions going into effect at later dates.

The CPA shares many similarities with the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and the Virgina Consumer Data Protection Act (CDPA), not having developed any brand-new ideas in its laws. However, there are also differences. For example, the CPA applies to controllers that conduct business in Colorado or target residents of Colorado with their business, and controls or processes the data of more than 100 000 consumers in a calendar year or receive revenue by processing data of more than 25 000 consumers. Therefore, it is broader than the CDPA, and does not include revenue thresholds like the CCPA.

Similar to the CDPA, the CPA defines a consumer as “a Colorado resident acting only in an individual or household context” and explicitly omits individuals acting in “a commercial or employment context, as a job applicant, or as a beneficiary of someone acting in an employment context”. As a result, controllers do not need to consider the employee personal data they collect and process in the application of the CPA.

The CPA further defines “the sale of personal information” as “the exchange of personal data for monetary or other valuable consideration by a controller to a third party”. Importantly, the definition of “sale” explicitly excludes certain types of disclosures, as is the case in the CDPA, such as:

  • Disclosures to a processor that processes the personal data on behalf of a controller;
  • Disclosures of personal data to a third party for purposes of providing a product or service requested by consumer;
  • Disclosures or transfer or personal data to an affiliate of the controller’s;
  • Disclosure or transfer to a third party of personal data as an asset that is part of a proposed or actual merger, acquisition, bankruptcy, or other transaction in which the third party assumes control of all or part of the controller’s assets;
  • Disclosure of personal data that a consumer directs the controller to disclose or intentionally discloses by using the controller to interact with a third party; or intentionally made available by a consumer to the general public via a channel of mass media.

The CPA provides five main consumer rights, such as the right of access, right of correction, right of deletion, right to data portability and right to opt out. In case of the latter, the procedure is different from the other laws. The CPA mandates a controller provide consumers with the right to opt out and a universal opt-out option so a consumer can click one button to exercise all opt-out rights.

In addition, the CPA also provides the consumer with a right to appeal a business’ denial to take action within a reasonable time period.

The CPA differentiates between controller and processor in a similar way that the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) does and follows, to an extent, similar basic principles such as duty of transparency, duty of purpose specification, duty of data minimization, duty of care and duty to avoid secondary use. In addition, it follows the principle of duty to avoid unlawful discrimination, which prohibits controllers from processing personal data in violation of state or federal laws that prohibit discrimination.

British Airways could reach a settlement over the 2018 data breach

7. July 2021

Back in 2018 British Airways was hit by a data breach affecting up to 500 000 data subjects – customers as well as British Airways staff.

Following the breach the UK’s Information Commissioners Office (ICO) has fined British Airways firstly in 2019 with a record fine of £183.000.000 (€ 205.000.000), due to the severe consequences of the breach. As reported beside inter alia e-mail addresses of the concerned data subjects also credit card information have been accessed by the hackers.

The initial record fine has been reduced by the ICO in 2020 after British Airways appealed against it. The ICO announced the final sanction in October 2020 –  £20.000.000 (€ 22.000.000). Reason for the reduction has been inter alia the current COVID-19 situation and it’s consequences for the Aviation industry.

Most recently it has been published that British Airways also came to a settlement in a UK breach class action with up to 16 000 claimants. The details of the settlement have been kept confidential, so that the settlement sum is not known, but the law firm, PGMBM, representing the claimants, as well as British Airways announced the settlement on July 6th.

PGMBM further explains, that the fine of the ICO “did not provide redress to those affected”, but that “the settlement now addresses” the consequences for the data subjects, as reported by the BBC.

European Commission Adopts UK Adequacy Decisions

5. July 2021

On June 28, 2021, the European Commission adopted two adequacy decisions for the United Kingdom, one under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and another under the Law Enforcement Directive.

This means that organizations in the EU can continue to transfer personal data to organizations in the UK without restriction and fear of repercussions. Thus, there is no need to rely upon data transfer mechanisms, such as the EU Standard Contractual Clauses, to ensure an adequate level of protection while transferring personal data, which represents a relief as the bridging mechanism of the interim period decided on after Brexit set out to expire by the end of June 2021.

The European Commission found the U.K.’s data protection system has continued to incorporate to the same rules that were applicable when it was an EU member state, as it had “fully incorporated” the principles, rights and obligations of the GDPR and Law Enforcement Directive into its post-Brexit legal system.

The Commission also noted the U.K. system provides strong safeguards in regards to how it handles personal data access by public authorities, particularly for issues of national security.

In regards to criticism of potential changes in the UK’s legal system concerning personal data, Věra Jourová, Vice-President for Values and Transparency stated that: „We have listened very carefully to the concerns expressed by the Parliament, the Members States and the European Data Protection Board, in particular on the possibility of future divergence from our standards in the UK’s privacy framework. We are talking here about a fundamental right of EU citizens that we have a duty to protect. This is why we have significant safeguards and if anything changes on the UK side, we will intervene.“

The Commission highlighted that the collection of data by UK intelligence authorities is legally subject to prior authorization by an independent judicial body and that any access to data needs to be necessary and proportionate to the purpose pursued. Individuals also have the ability to seek redress in the UK Investigatory Powers Tribunal.

U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand announces the Data Protection Act 2021

30. June 2021

U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand announced in a press release on June 17, 2021, the reintroduction of the Data Protection Act of 2021. The intention is to create an independent federal agency, the Data Protection Agency, to better equip data protection in the U.S. for the digital age.

Since the first bill was drafted in 2020, it has undergone several updates. For example, the paper will now include adjusted rules to protect data subjects against privacy violations, monitor risky data practices, and examine social, ethical, and economic impacts of data collection. In the press release, Gillibrand explains that the DPA will have three main core tasks. The core tasks are driven by the goal of preventing risky data practices and regulating the collection, processing and sharing of personal data.

The first goal, she says, is to give individuals control and protection over their own data. To this end, data subjects should be given the right to establish and enforce data protection rules. To implement this, emphasis would also have to be placed on complaint handling. The authority would also be given wide-ranging powers. For example, it would be able to conduct investigations and administer civil penalties, injunctions and other appropriate remedies to combat data privacy violations.

The second task would be to promote fair competition in the digital market. This can be achieved, for example, through the development and refinement of model standards, guidelines and policies to protect privacy and data protection. Companies should find it easier to deal with data protection. At the same time, the U.S. should be able to keep pace with leading nations in data protection.

In this context data aggregators are to be monitored by the Data Protection Agency by maintaining a publicly available list of such data aggregators that meet certain thresholds. The FTC (Federal Trade Commission) would at the same time be required to report on the privacy and data protection implications of mergers involving major data aggregators or involving the transfer of personal data of 50,000 or more individuals. The bill would also lastly prohibit data aggregators from certain acts. For example, it would prevent the commission of abusive or discriminatory acts in connection with the processing or transfer of personal data. The goal, Gillibrand says, is also to prevent the identification of a person, household, or device from anonymized data.

A third important task is to prepare the U.S. government for the digital age. The agency is supposed to contribute to more education on digital issues by advising Congress on new privacy and technology issues. She says the agency would also participate as the U.S. representative in international privacy forums. The goal also is to ensure consistent regulatory treatment of personal data by federal and state agencies. To that extent, the authority would act as an interface between federal and state agencies.

Senator Gillibrand commented as follows: “In today’s digital age, Big Tech companies are free to sell individuals’ data to the highest bidder without fear of real consequences, posing a severe threat to modern-day privacy and civil rights. A data privacy crisis is looming over the everyday lives of Americans and we need to hold these bad actors accountable. (…) The U.S. needs a new approach to privacy and data protection and it’s Congress’ duty to step forward and seek answers that will give Americans meaningful protection from private companies that value profits over people.”

Category: General · USA

New details on alleged spying on allies by the NSA

18. June 2021

It has been known for years that the US National Security Agency (NSA) had been targeting leading politicians. But now new details of the spying operation are coming to light. Several European media investigated the case and found out that the NSA had been using Danish underwater internet cables from 2012 to 2014 to eavesdrop on leading European politicians. It was only through the research that the members of the governments learned of the spying. With regard to this, questions arose, whether Denmark was involved and knew about the operation. Now various European countries demand answers to the allegations.

The media reports revealed that the Danish Defence Intelligence Service (DDIS) had helped the NSA to wiretap European politicians (in German) by allowing the NSA to use the secret Sandagergårdan listening post near Copenhagen. An important internet hub for various underwater cables was then tapped there. The NSA apparently got access to text messages, telephone calls and internet traffic including searches, chats and messaging services.

Following the revelations by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden and a subsequent investigation by a secret internal working group at DDIS, the Danish-US cooperation in the surveillance of European neighboring countries was documented in an internal report of DDIS in 2015. However, the findings have not been disclosed until today. Nevertheless, the Danish government has probably known about the spying operation since 2015 at the latest. More than that, the surveillance apparently also targeted Denmark itself (in German), including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Finance.

Danish Defence Minister Trine Bramsen was informed about the spying in August 2020. In the wake of that, some DDIS employees were fired, without a full explanation being released. The government said at the time that an audit had raised suspicions of illegal surveillance by DDIS. In October 2020, the Danish Ministry of Justice ordered a commission of inquiry into the operations at DDIS. Its conclusions are due at the end of 2021.

French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, being among those affected by the espionage, made clear that such tactics were not acceptable between allies. Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg and Swedish Defence Minister Peter Hultqvist agreed with the statements. While emphasizing the value of relations between Europeans and Americans, they insisted on explaining the case by the two accused countries. Neither of the intelligence services would comment on the allegations. The Danish Defence Minister only stated in general terms that systematic wiretapping of close allies was unacceptable.

ICO fined several companies for data protection infringements

15. June 2021

The UK Information Commissioner’s Office (“ICO”) has fined several companies at the beginning of June for data protection infringements.

All fines have in common that the fined companies conducted marketing measures without having the required consent for doing so.

  • Conservative Party

The ICO has fined the Conservative Party £10,000 for sending 51 marketing emails without having the required legal basis and in violation of Regulation 22 of the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulation 2003 (PECR).

The Conservative Party sent out a total of 1.190.280 marketing emails between July 24th and July 31st 2019, right after the election and in the name of Rt Hon Boris Johnson MP.

The ICO investigated that the party failed to ensure having a valid legal basis for marketing emails when changing the email provider. Even though the ICO assumes that there are more than 51 concerned data subjects, the ICO only received complaints of 51 individuals, thus the fine is based on this amount of concerned data subjects.

  • Colour Car Sales Ltd.

The ICO has fined Colour Car Sales Ltd (CCSL)  £170,000  for sending spam text messages from October 2018 to January 2020. CCSL is a credit intermediary for used car finance and the purpose of the spam texts was to direct the recipients to car finance websites.

Also in this case basis for the fine has been complaints of concerned data subjects which complained about not have given consent for receiving marketing emails from CCSL.

  • Solarwave of Grays

The ICO has fined Solarwave of Grays £100,000 for conducting 73.217 marketing calls about solar panel maintenance from January to October 2020.

The complainants that raised the concerns stated that they were registered with the Telephone Preference Service and should have received any marketing telephone calls based on this.

The Telephone Preference Service is the UK’s “do not call register” with which individuals can register to show that they are not interested in receiving any kind of marketing phone calls.

Beside the violation of the data protection law and the Telephone Preferences Service the concerned data subjects also stated that the callers were rude and persistent and ignored stop requests.

  • LTH Holdings

The ICO has fined LTH Holding, a Cardiff based telephone marketing company, £145,000 for conducting 1.4 million calls trying to sell funeral plans between May 2019 and May 2020.

In this case the ICO received 41 complaints and the complainants were also registered with the Telephone Preferences Service. Beside this infringement, the concerned data subjects also told the ICO that LTH adopted aggressive, coercive and persuasive methods to sell funeral plans.

  • Papa John’s

The ICO has fined Papa John’s Limited, a national takeaway pizza company, £10,000 for sending 168,022 nuisance marketing messages to its customers.

In this case the ICO received 15 complaints also stating the distress and annoyance the messages were causing. Some customers received up to 100 messages in two months without ever have given consent for marketing emails.

The ICO investigated that Papa John’s has sent over 210.000 messages to customers between October 1st 2019 and April 30th 2020.

In the contrary to the opinion of Papa John’s the ICO did not see the possibility to rely on “soft opt-in” because the data used for the marketing emails has been obtained for processing orders and not receiving marketing emails. Furthermore, the required information of the customers on this processing activity is missing.

High Court dismisses Facebook’s procedural complaints in Data Transfer Case

18. May 2021

On Friday, May 14th 2021, the Irish High Court dismissed all of Facebook’s procedural complaints in a preliminary decision from Ireland’s Data Protection Commission regarding data transfers from the EU to the U.S. It rejected Facebook’s claims that the privacy regulator had given it too little time to respond or issued a judgment prematurely.

If finalized, the preliminary decision could force the social-media company to suspend sending personal information about EU users to Facebook’s servers in the U.S. While the decision of the High Court was only a procedural one, experts warn that the logic in Ireland’s provisional order could apply to other large tech companies that are subject to U.S. surveillance laws. This could potentially lead to a widespread disruption of trans-Atlantic data flows.

Facebook addressed the preliminary decision, stating that Friday’s court decision was procedural and that it planned to defend its data transfers before the Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC). It added that the regulator’s preliminary decision could be “damaging not only to Facebook, but also to users and other businesses.”

However, the Irish DPC still needs to finalize its draft decision ordering a suspension of data transfers and submit it to other EU privacy regulators for approval before it comes into effect. That process could take months, not counting potential other court challenges by Facebook.

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