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In preparation for the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA), effective January 1, 2023, the California AG Rob Bonta has been actively enforcing the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and providing updated guidance for consumers and businesses. The AG recently held a press conference to discuss enforcement proceedings brought by his office over the last year…

According to a report issued last week, tens of thousands of cannabis dispensary customers’ personal data has been exposed following a data breach of a sales system that at least three (and likely more) cannabis dispensaries may have used to manage their sales to customers. Our recent client alert highlights the increasing threat that cyber…

Check out this month’s edition of The Privacy Advisor, a publication of the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP), for Aaron Lancaster and Divonne Smoyer’s and Q&A with Vermont Attorney General T.J. Donovan. As attorney general, he has taken an active role in advocating for consumers’ rights with respect to privacy and…

In a recent request for a preliminary ruling in a case concerning Amazon, the Advocate General Pitruzzella (AG) has given his opinion that the Consumer Rights Directive (2011/83/EU) (CRD) requires traders to offer their consumers a choice of means of communication, but this is not confined to the trader’s telephone number. The CRD includes the trader’s telephone number, fax number and e-mail address, “where available, to enable the consumer to contact the trader quickly and communicate with him efficiently”. The AG clarified that this is therefore not limited to a telephone number, and accordingly traders may use other means of communication with consumers as long as they are consistent with the technical means of the transaction being made.

Online trades imply sufficient knowledge of interacting over the internet

The Federation of German Consumer Organisations (Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband) brought a claim asserting that Amazon did not offer sufficient contact channels to its consumers before the conclusion of an online sale – in spite of the online sales platform’s automated call-back facility and online chat service. There was a particular concern that consumers were not provided with the company’s fax number and were also prompted to follow an identity-verification process before they could have access to Amazon’s general helpline telephone number.Continue Reading Must online traders provide consumers with a contact telephone number? Advocate General says no…t necessarily

On February 14, 2019 the European Commission, European Parliament and Council of the European Union agreed to implement new rules designed to ensure a fair, transparent and predictable business environment to the benefit of both end consumers and entrepreneurs using third-party online platforms for their business. The Council and European Parliament will adopt these new…

Democrat Phil Murphy has been elected as the next Governor of the State of New Jersey. Murphy comes in to the office with a double-digit victory over departing lieutenant governor Kim Guadagno (R), and the backing of a state legislature controlled by Democrats.  Governor-Elect Murphy, who has never served in elected office, promises to take the Garden State in a new direction.

Among the portions of his platform most likely to be of interest to businesses, Governor-Elect Murphy has committed to:

  1. “Establishing a state-level Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and strengthening existing regulations in light of President Trump’s efforts to roll-back the federal Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform law”;
  2. “Holding bankers accountable by prosecuting financial fraud”;
  3. “Requiring telecom providers and ISPs to seek permission before collecting personal information”;
  4. “Appointing an Attorney General who will enforce consumer protections around data privacy”;
  5. “Improving our state’s existing cybersecurity and other Homeland Security initiatives”; and
  6. “Convening stakeholders in government, industry, and academia to share best practices in cybersecurity and to foster new innovations.”

Continue Reading Businesses Operating in the Garden State Brace For NJ Governor Murphy