California Consumer Protection Act Privacy Groups Urge California Lawmakers Not to Weaken California Consumer Privacy Act • A variety of privacy groups, including the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the Digital Privacy Alliance and the Center for Digital Democracy, sent a letter to California lawmakers asking them not to “push[] California backward” when it comes to privacy rights and to continue amending the California Consumer Privacy Act (the CCPA) for the better. • Touting California’s lead on…

GDPR European Regulators Fine Uber Over 2016 Data Breach • British and Dutch privacy regulators issued fines totaling approximately $1.2 million against ride-hailing company Uber over its 2016 data breach. • According to the U.K.’s Information Commissioner’s Office, “a series of avoidable data security flaws” led to the exposure of personal information of approximately 2.7 million British Uber users, prompting a fine of £385,000. • Similarly, the Dutch Data Protection Authority (DPA) fined the company…

Class Actions Pennsylvania Supreme Court Declares Employers Have Affirmative Duty to Protect Employee Personal Information • According to a recent opinion by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, “an employer has a legal duty to exercise reasonable care to safeguard its employees’ sensitive personal information stored by the employer on an internet-accessible computer system.” • The putative class action stems from a 2014 data breach that exposed personal information of 62,000 employees and former employees of the…

Class Actions Plaintiffs Seek Approval for $4.3 Million Settlement With Sonic in Credit Card Data Breach Suit • Following a variety of lawsuits against fast food chain Sonic Drive-In related to a 2017 credit card data breach, plaintiffs are seeking consolidation of those suits, class certification and a $4.3 million settlement. • The settlement would create a nationwide class of Sonic diners affected by the breach, each of whom would receive $10 if they used…

BIPA Medline and Con Tech Lighting Latest Illinois Employers Hit With Claims under BIPA • Two Illinois employers, Con Tech Lighting and Medline Industries, are the latest to face claims alleging violations of Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act. • In the Con Tech complaint, the named plaintiff, who is seeking class certification, alleges that she was never informed “the specific limited purposes or length of time” for which her biometric information “would be collected,…

Class Actions Judge Approves $80M Settlement in Yahoo Data Breach Suit • U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh awarded plaintiffs $80 million in a consolidated class action brought against Yahoo by shareholders resulting from data breaches Yahoo experienced in 2014 and 2016. • According to the suit, Yahoo’s stock was trading at an artificially high price because of the company’s failure to disclose the breaches in a timely fashion. • This is not the end of…