In early 2010, Google tried to jump on the social networking bandwagon by releasing its own service, Google Buzz. But the biggest buzz about the new service focused on privacy because Google pre-populated “following” lists with frequent chat and email contacts and... +Read more
In 2011, ScanScout, an online video advertising network, was investigated by the FTC and hit with a class action lawsuit for its deceptive practice of using persistent “supercookies” to track users online... +Read more
In 2012, Google agreed to pay a record $22.5 million FTC fine and was hit with multiple lawsuits for violating its own... +Read more
Google has been widely praised for allowing users to export data from Google services for their own purposes. The service, known as Google Takeout, provides users with a centralized place to export their data from over twenty supported... +Read more
In 2012, Netflix settled a class action lawsuit alleging that it retained records about former customers in violation of the Video Privacy Protection Act. The company ultimately settled the lawsuit by agreeing to pay $9... +Read more
Apple drew attention to its privacy-friendly practices when it refused to comply with a warrant demanding that it access data on a customer’s cell phone. In 2015, Apple received a court order to provide data from an iPhone based on the... +Read more
Amazon was praised for its commitment to protecting the privacy of users in 2010 after refusing a demand to turn over records detailing more than 50 million purchases of North Carolina residents to that state’s Department of Revenue. To protect its customers and... +Read more
Tech companies including Facebook, Apple, Google, and Microsoft won acclaim when they revised their policies to ... +Read more
In January 2011, Twitter was applauded for its “remarkable display of backbone” in standing up for its users’ privacy and free speech rights by challenging the secrecy of a demand from the Department of Justice (DOJ). The DOJ obtained a... +Read more
Facebook was hailed by the media after it “vehemently” opposed a set of warrants from the New York District Attorney’s Office demanding information on 381 users, arguing that the warrants were overbroad. Although... +Read more
Google was praised, and its competitors chastised, when in 2005 the company challenged a subpoena from the federal Department of Justice (DOJ) that demanded every single search query the company had received over a... +Read more