Driverless Cars Get Green Light in California

Clearing the way for testing and regulations, California became the third state to legalize driverless cars, prompting Gov. Jerry Brown to quip that the state is one step closer to making science fiction a reality. Lobbying for the so-called autonomous vehicles has intensified as manufacturers tout the eventual safety improvements…

Sep 26, 2012 1:36 PM CDT

Judge Refuses to Order YouTube to Remove Anti-Muslim Video

A Los Angeles judge has refused to order YouTube to remove an anti-Muslim video in a suit by an actress who claims she was duped into appearing in the film. Judge Luis Lavin refused to grant a temporary restraining order on Thursday, report the Wall Street Journal Speakeasy blog, the…

Sep 21, 2012 1:41 PM CDT

Actress in Anti-Muslim Film Says She Was Duped, Sues Producer and YouTube

An actress who appeared in the anti-Muslim film sparking protests across the globe has sued the producer for fraud and YouTube in a bid to get the video removed. Cindy Lee Garcia says she has received “credible death threats” since starring in Innocence of Muslims, has been fired from her…

Sep 20, 2012 11:32 AM CDT

Texas Lawyers Warned: Ignore That Email from ‘Barthelemy William’

The Texas Supreme Court is warning lawyers that it does not have an employee named Barthelemy William who is seeking property information. Emails purporting to be from this person are apparently a scam or a “phishing” attempt to get personal information, according to the state supreme court website. Texas Lawyer’s…

Sep 19, 2012 3:22 PM CDT

California Divorce Lawyer Is Charged in Plot to Bug Cars of Her Clients’ Spouses

A California divorce lawyer has been accused in a criminal indictment of planting listening devices in the vehicles of her clients’ spouses to obtain information for legal proceedings. Mary Alice Nolan, 60, of San Ramon is accused of referring clients to a private investigator who installed the listening devices, report…

Sep 19, 2012 11:38 AM CDT

Royal Family Wins Initial Round in Lawsuit Over Topless Photos of Sunbathing Duchess of Cambridge

A French court has sided with the British royal family in a lawsuit filed almost immediately following the publication of photos of the topless Duchess of Cambridge sunbathing on a secluded private estate there during a vacation with her husband, Prince William. The French gossip magazine Closer must pay Kate…

Sep 18, 2012 5:25 PM CDT

Want to Weigh In on Web User Rights? Proposed Law Is Being Drafted by Individuals Online

At a time when privacy and intellectual property issues often collide with the day-to-day reality of what individuals and corporations consider ordinary uses of the Internet, an effort is afoot to create a Digital Citizen’s Bill of Rights. U.S. Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., has posted a draft on the Madison…

Sep 14, 2012 7:10 PM CDT

Two Lawmakers Criticize DLA Piper for Representing Chinese Company

Two U.S. lawmakers are citing cyber security concerns in a letter criticizing DLA Piper for its representation of a Chinese company. U.S. Reps. Sue Myrick of North Carolina and Frank Wolf of Virginia, both Republicans, chastise DLA Piper in the letter for its representation of ZTE Corp., report Reuters, Bloomberg…

Sep 14, 2012 12:49 PM CDT

Divorce Lawyer Is Sued Along with Client Who Secretly Monitored Wife on Video

A well-known Cincinnati lawyer is among the defendants in two federal privacy lawsuits filed by a woman and her online friend claiming the attorney intended to use secret surveillance in divorce proceedings. Plaintiff Catherine Zang alleges her then-husband, Cincinnati home builder Joseph Zang, spied on her with a hidden video…

Sep 12, 2012 12:10 PM CDT

Report: More Smartphone Owners Than Cellphone Owners Report Privacy Breaches

The smarter the phone, the smarter you’d better be—or at least knowledgeable and vigilant. That’s the takeaway from a new report out of the Pew Research Center concerning privacy and mobile devices. More owners of smartphones (15 percent) than regular cellphones (8 percent) say someone “has accessed their phone in…

Sep 6, 2012 6:30 PM CDT

Restaurants May Be Tracking You, But Fear of Lawsuits Inspires Tasteful Limits

In restaurant lingo, LOL does not stand for “laughing out loud.” Instead, it is an acronym for “little old lady,” and it is included in some restaurant computers to indicate a diner who may need special seating, the New York Times reports. HWC may mean “handle with care,” SFN may…

Sep 6, 2012 10:30 AM CDT

Homeland Security’s Chief Privacy Officer to Lead New Practice Group at Jenner

Jenner & Block has formed a new practice group for privacy matters and hired a government privacy expert to head it. Mary Ellen Callahan, the chief privacy officer at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, will lead Jenner’s privacy and information governance practice from the firm’s Washington, D.C., office, according…

Sep 5, 2012 3:55 PM CDT

Lawyer Documents Her Data Trail, Revealing Corporate Role in Daily Lives

Big brother is a corporation, and it’s watching. The executive director of the National Lawyers Guild, Heidi Boghosian, documented her one-day “data trail” for the New York Times blog the Caucus. Boghosian has written a book expected to be published next year called Spying on Democracy: A Short History of…

Sep 5, 2012 11:00 AM CDT

No Hiding It: Secrecy Is a Goner

Sep 1, 2012 5:50 AM CDT

Record $22.5M Google Pact Sparks Self-Scrutiny by Other Companies re Privacy, Data Security

It isn’t just individuals who can find companies’ privacy and data security policies confusing. Companies themselves don’t always follow their own rules for protecting user information. Now, in the wake of a record $22.5 million settlement by Google Inc. with the Federal Trade Commission, albeit without admitting any liability, other…

Aug 21, 2012 10:07 PM CDT