In addition to being the world’s greatest communications medium, the Internet is one of the most effective conduits for fraud, illegality, and other mischief. Moreover, perpetrators, and the general public, tend to think that this kind of misconduct is uncatchable.
Internet Law Twists & Turns
Internet Law Twists & Turns, published by Thompson Coburn, focuses on legal issues arising from the digital and online environment. The blog covers topics such as internet fraud, cybercrime, online misinformation and disinformation, social media endorsements and advertising regulations, privacy concerns, intellectual property challenges in the digital space, and emerging technologies like deepfakes. It also addresses legal responses to internet misconduct, including enforcement actions, regulatory developments, and litigation strategies. The blog discusses the intersection of technology, law, and policy, highlighting how traditional legal principles apply to new forms of online behavior and the evolving challenges posed by the internet.
Latest from Internet Law Twists & Turns
FTC warns of penalties for false endorsements
As social media has been “blurring the lines,” the Federal Trade Commission decided to make one thing starkly clear: false endorsements, even through well-meaning consumer testimonials, are illegal.
The FTC sent out a “Notice of Penalty Offenses” to 700 large…
Disinformation report suggests major legal reforms
We’re suffering from “information disorder,” according to a report recently issued through the Aspen Institute. That’s not news. But how to solve this problem is the big issue, and the commission’s answer is that it will require substantial legal changes,…
Lessons from a long-ago deepfakes prosecution
Use of fake identities found deceitful in commercial email — why not elsewhere on the Internet?
The Third Circuit Court of Appeals recently had to decide a sensitive and difficult issue: Can you use a false identity to deceive someone when you are selling something by email? After careful deliberation, the court held that under the…
Amazon and U.S. IPR Center announce “Operation Fulfilled Action”
On November 24, 2020, the U.S. government’s National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center (IPR Center) and Amazon announced a joint effort to address counterfeit goods entering the U.S. In an effort to protect consumers, the operation will analyze data and…
Muting Misinformation: Resources for identifying and dealing with misinformation
We may be on our own in the world of internet misinformation, but we don’t lack resources. An expert industry is developing about misinformation, how to spot it and how to better understand the strange world of information on the…
Muting Misinformation: Only you can prevent the spread of political untruths
Political misinformation on the Internet is likely to continue, and our previous posts on laws, business practices and reforms have made it apparent that it is up to you, the Web User, to navigate truth and falsity on your…
Muting Misinformation: Can Congress legislate a solution?
Existing U.S. laws don’t prevent misinformation on the Internet, as we have seen, nor do social media companies keep it off their services on their own. The question naturally arises whether new Internet laws could change things. The trick…
Muting Misinformation: What’s the role of social media companies?
Can we rely on social media companies to vet and clean up their content, so that misinformation doesn’t pollute the 2020 political campaign? Having concluded in a previous post that lawsuits can’t effectively stop Internet misinformation, we turn to social…