Author: Goldberg Segalla

Class Action / Data Privacy

Biometric Class Action Against Facebook Greenlit by Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals

In an opinion article dated August 8, 2019, the Ninth Circuit Court affirmed the district court’s order certifying a class action of users who claim Facebook’s facial-recognition technology violates Illinois’s Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA). A copy of the Ninth Circuit’s opinion can be found here.  At issue is Facebook’s use of facial-recognition technology without first obtaining the consent of its users. The court agreed that the plaintiffs had sufficiently alleged a concrete and particularized harm sufficient to confer Article III standing. The court… Continue Reading
Cyber Risk

Equifax Agrees to Largest Ever Data Breach Settlement

In connection with the massive 2017 Equifax data breach which affected more than 147 million consumers, a global settlement has been reached to resolve a multi-district consumer action as well as a suit brought by the Federal Trade Commission. Equifax, one of the largest consumer reporting agencies, was allegedly aware of a critical security vulnerability in March 2017. However, it failed to address the issue until July 2017, when suspicious traffic was detected. Ultimately, on September 7, 2017, Equifax announced a data breach involving… Continue Reading
Cyber Attacks

Fedex Becomes Victim of Latest Spat of Large Scale Cyber-Related Securities Class Actions

As if anyone needed yet another reminder of the invasive effect a cybersecurity event can have on a business, we need not to look any further than the  putative securities fraud class action lawsuits filed against global logistics giant FedEx. On June 26, 2019, the first lawsuit against FedEx was filed in the Southern District of New York. The complaint generally alleges that FedEx violated federal securities laws when it made allegedly fraudulent disclosures concerning the extent of the impact caused by the NotPetya malware… Continue Reading
Cyber Attacks

What Is Modern Warfare? Ninth Circuit Rules War Exclusions Do Not Preclude Coverage for First Party Loss Caused by Hamas Rocket Attacks

On July 12, 2019, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals found two “war” exclusions inapplicable, under California law, to a loss caused by 2014 hostilities between Israel and Hamas. Universal Cable Productions, LLC v. Atlantic Specialty Insurance Co., No. 17-56672, 2019 WL 3049034 (July 12, 2019). In doing so, the court overturned the Central District of California’s award of summary judgment in favor of Atlantic Specialty Insurance Company. The parties’ dispute arose out of Atlantic’s refusal to indemnify Universal for costs associated with Universal’s… Continue Reading
Cybersecurity

Internet of Things Cybersecurity Improvement Act

On January 1, 2020, California’s “Security of Connected Devices” law (Senate Bill No. 327), which was enacted in 2018, will require companies that manufacture any device that connects “directly or indirectly” to the Internet that is sold in California to incorporate within the device “a reasonable security feature or features.” What constitutes as a “reasonable security feature” is largely undefined, but if the device is capable of authentication outside of a local area network (LAN), then the security will be deemed reasonable if a preprogrammed… Continue Reading
Cyber Attacks / Legislation

Preparing Private Companies for Politically Motivated Cyberattacks

Law firms in the midst of large and publicly reported M&A deals, accounting firms during return season, and Facebook at just about any moment, should all assume that they are being targeted by hackers. However, the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) announcement that Iranian regime actors and proxies have been using “wiper” attacks adds a new indicator: geopolitical importance during politically sensitive times. The director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) released a tweet late last week notifying the public that Iran is… Continue Reading
Data Privacy / Legislation

Part 1: The California Consumer Privacy Act — What Insurers Need to Know

Assembly Bill No. 375, better known as the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), is likely the most robust and sweeping privacy law in the United States. This is not surprising as California is notoriously at the forefront of passing privacy legislation, even though close to 20 other states are also taking steps to pass similar legislation. The CCPA, which becomes effective January 1, 2020, creates a number of consumer rights regarding the collection, storage, selling, and processing of personal information, as well as corresponding business… Continue Reading
Cybersecurity

Considering Legal Privileges in the Cybersecurity Context

Any organization that is cognizant of its cybersecurity obligations faces a fundamental problem: the greater the effort to increase security, the greater the number of documents generated, memorializing those efforts. Those documents could be discoverable in the event of litigation. The law of privilege in the context of pre-breach planning, including application of the attorney-client relationship to third-party technology vendors and security engineers, remains largely uncharted. The thought leaders at The Sedona Conference are taking steps to help frame the dialogue and set the stage… Continue Reading
Cyber Breach / Lawsuit

Federal Court Rejects Data Breach Suit Alleging a Breach of a Privacy Policy Involving Major Airline

Even as federal courts become more lenient with affording standing in data breach lawsuits, limits remain to the type of claims courts will permit to proceed. The United States District Court for the Central District of California provided a recent example on June 18, 2019, in dismissing a suit against Delta Air Lines arising from a data breach suffered in 2017 by a vendor for Delta that supports the company’s website by providing chat services and collecting customer data (this good information will give you… Continue Reading
Cyber Risk

Yearly Cyber Report Reveals Large Increases in Cyberattacks and Costs

The third Hiscox Cyber Readiness Report, which was published in April 2019, highlights the increased cyber risks that businesses are facing. The report, which drew data from seven countries (Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States), noted the marked rise in both the amount of attacks and the overall costs stemming from cyber losses. Turning first to the increase in cyberattacks, 61 percent of respondents reported a cyber incident, up from 45 percent last year across the seven… Continue Reading