In an 8-0 ruling with Justice Kagan recused, the Supreme Court has reversed a Third Circuit decision in FCC v. AT&T (No. 09-1279). The upshot of the ruling is that corporations cannot withhold information or block its release in response to a freedom of information request by claiming that the information is protected under the…
Category: Business
What are the Constitutional Limits on Online Tracking Regulations?
Harlan Yu writes: As the conceptual contours of Do Not Track are being worked out, an interesting question to consider is whether such a regulation—if promulgated—would survive a First Amendment challenge. Could Do Not Track be an unconstitutional restriction on the commercial speech of online tracking entities? The answer would of course depend on what…
Facebook might prevent applications from asking minors for contact information. Then again, it might not.
Jim Puzzanghera reports: Facebook said Monday it was “actively considering” whether to allow third-party applications to request mobile phone numbers and addresses from users younger than 18. The ability of applications to request that information from users of the social networking site has been the subject of controversy since Facebook first allowed it in January. Facebook…
Web’s Hot New Commodity: Privacy
Julia Angwin and Emily Steel report: As the surreptitious tracking of Internet users becomes more aggressive and widespread, tiny start-ups and technology giants alike are pushing a new product: privacy. Companies including Microsoft Corp., McAfee Inc.—and even some online-tracking companies themselves—are rolling out new ways to protect users from having their movements monitored online. Some…