The European Court of Human Rights, a body of the Council of Europe, has issued a major court ruling on employee monitoring which deserves attention on this side of the pond and provides some guidance for companies with employees in Europe. Europe has generally taken a more protective stance than the U.S. when it comes
Monitoring
FTC’s Big Data Report Has Suggestions for the Workplace
Earlier this month, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) issued a report discussing “big data.” The report compiles the agency’s learning from recent seminars and research, including a public workshop held on September 15, 2014. Known best for its role as the federal government’s consumer protection watchdog, the FTC highlights in the report a number…
Driver Privacy Act of 2015
An increasing number of companies have been installing or otherwise using some of the latest monitoring technologies in vehicles driven by employees – whether those vehicles are owned by the company or the employee – usually for safety and/or logistics management. These technologies include “event data recorders” or EDRs that capture a range of information…
Healthcare Worker Gives New Employer Patient Records, Old Employer Pays $15,000 to NY Attorney General For HIPAA Violation
One of your employees discloses your organization’s patient information to a soon-to-be new employer for use in generating business at the new employer’s competing business, and your company has to settle with the New York State Attorney General for HIPAA violations. Make sense?
This is what happened according to a published settlement agreement (pdf) that…
Senate Passes Cybersecurity Law as the Struggle Between Data Security and Privacy Continues
The Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act or CISA passed the Senate this week by vote of 74-21, but not without controversy. CISA would not establish a generally applicable federal standard for safeguarding personal information, nor would it enact a federal breach notification requirement. Rather, if signed into law, CISA would among other things create a framework…
Wearables, Wellness and Privacy
Bloomberg BNA (subscription) recently reported that this fall the Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) will be issuing a report on Fitbit Inc.’s privacy practices. Avid runners, walkers or those up on the latest gadgets likely know about Fitbit, and its line of wearable fitness devices. Others may know about Fitbit due to the need…
The Hololens From Microsoft – Help Can Be Right Under…Over Your Nose
The saying – never let them see you sweat – soon may be more difficult to accomplish with Microsoft’s Hololens. Like Google Glass, the Hololens is worn as a headset. But this device has a “plurality” of sensors that gather a range of biometrics parameters (heart rate, perspiration, etc.) which determine along with other…
Wisconsin – Criminal Penalties for Improper GPS Use
As of July 2, 2015, Wisconsin law makes it a Class A misdemeanor for any individual to place a GPS device on another individual’s vehicle without the consent of the vehicle’s owner. Based on comments from the bill’s sponsors, it appears as though the goal of the new law is to protect potential victims or
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States Continue to Protect the Personal Social Media Accounts of Employees, with Oregon Likely to Add an Interesting Twist
Over the past few years, states around the country have enacted laws limiting an employer’s ability to access the personal social media accounts of applicants and employees. Earlier this year, Montana’s Governor Steve Bullock signed HB 342 into law. Before that, Virginia enacted a similar measure. On May 19, Connecticut’s Governor added
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Email Autofill Error Exposes Personal Information of G20 World Leaders
With breaches caused by payment card thieves and hackers dominating the news, it is easy for mid-sized and small companies to think that data breaches are unfortunate events that affect only large companies. Not only is this sentiment misguided, but in relative terms the information contained in exposed emails can cause far more damage to …