Balough
October 7, 2016
(October 7, 2016) In its report of a new study on patent assertion entities (PAEs), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) carefully avoids the term patent troll while finding that “Litigation” PAEs account for 96 percent of patent infringement lawsuits but generate only about 20 percent of patent license revenues of those PAEs studied. The report, […]
Balough
June 22, 2016
(June 22, 2016) The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has issued a final rule governing the commercial use of small drones. The rule, which goes into effect in late August, covers only the operation of drones, referred to by the FAA as Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), that weigh less than 55 pounds. The rule is silent […]
Balough
May 27, 2016
(May 27, 2016) What advice attorneys need to give their clients on driverless cars is explored in an article by Richard C. Balough published by the American Bar Association’s Business Law Today. The age of autonomous vehicles is coming soon. You may soon be seeing vehicles on the road with no drivers as part of […]
Balough
February 18, 2016
(February 18, 2016) It was not a Hollywood movie but a real life ransomware attack that shut down the enterprise-wide hospital information system of an acute care facility for 10 days. Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center said it paid 40 Bitcoins or about $17,000 in ransom to obtain a decryption key to unlock its information system. […]
Balough
January 26, 2016
(January 26, 2016) A new study finds Americans are willing under certain circumstances to share personal information for tangible benefits but are frequently unhappy about what happens to the information once they give it out. The Pew Research Center conducted a survey as well as online focus groups in which the participants were given specific […]
Balough
January 5, 2016
(Jan. 5, 2016) It was a no brainer for the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to charge the owner and marketer of the Lumosity brain-training program with deceiving customers through unsupported claims. Lumos Labs, Inc. d/b/a Lumosity, along with its co-founder and its chief scientific officer, agreed to pay $2 million in penalties and will notify […]
Balough
December 28, 2015
(December 28, 2015) Online users must be clearly warned when viewing “native advertising.” If not, the advertiser may be engaging in prohibited deceptive advertising, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) warns. In a new “Native Advertising A Guide for Businesses,” the FTC notes that “advertisers are responsible for ensuring that native ads are identifiable as advertising […]
Balough
December 16, 2015
(December 16, 2015) A new surge in ransomware attacks is underway, posing a threat to businesses and consumers, Symantec Corporation says. The computer security company said attackers are encrypting files and demanding ransom by using an updated version of the ransomware program TeslaCrypt. Over the past two weeks, attackers have sent “out massive volumes of […]
Balough
July 21, 2015
(July 21, 2015) Are Uber drivers independent contractors or employees? Apparently, the answer depends upon which Uber pleading you read. In an effort to dismiss a lawsuit alleging violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), Uber argues that the text messages were sent for “job recruitment.” The job was to be a driver for […]
Balough
December 13, 2014
In a reversal of previous practice, employees may use their employer’s email system for labor organizing, the National Labor Relations Board ruled. The new case involved the right of employees to “communicate with one another regarding self-organization at the jobsite” under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act. In 2007 the NLRB had found […]
