Balough
April 27, 2015
Retailers are listening to their customers’ smart phones, and that’s a problem, the majority of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) found. The issue concerns a company that provided a program that secretly tracked customer movements in and around stores using their smart phones and not telling customers they are being tracked, even though the company’s […]
Balough
April 18, 2015
Customers whose images were captured by spyware put on their rental computers from a franchisee of Aaron’s, Inc. may file a class action, the Third Circuit ruled, reversing a trial court’s decision. The appellate court found that the plaintiffs’ proposed classes were ascertainable and not vague. As a result, the plaintiffs may proceed with their […]
Balough
April 17, 2015
Phishing is reeling in more victims than in previous years, a new report found. In 2014, 23 percent of phishing email recipients open up the message, up from earlier yearly averages of 10 to 20 percent. In addition, 11 percent of the recipients click on the attachments, the 2015 Data Breach Investigations Report conducted by […]
Balough
April 9, 2015
You can’t trademark Mardi Gras Bead Dogs for jewelry, pastries, and clothing because the phrase is merely descriptive of traditional Mardi Gras beads (used in New Orleans) which are shaped into dogs. As a result, the Fifth Circuit affirmed a trial court’s summary judgment finding the trademarks invalid. Of course, the Fifth Circuit should know what’s […]
Balough
March 28, 2015
Bigger is not necessarily better and longer is definitely not preferred—at least when it comes to pleadings before one New York U.S. District Court judge. When confronted with a 175-paragraph complaint with 1,400 pages of exhibits and a 210-page, 1,020-paragraph answer, Judge William H. Pauley III had enough. First, he chided the defense for its […]
Balough
March 20, 2015
Has your computer been hacked? Want to know what to do? The Federal Trade Commission has prepared a short video giving basic pointers on cleaning your computer of malware and getting it working again. Here’s the video:
Balough
March 19, 2015
QVC, Inc. is not entitled to an injunction against a small start-up that sent web crawlers to the online retailer giant, overloading QVC’s servers for two days and impairing consumers’ ability to use the site. QVC alleged that Resultly, Inc. violated the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) because it sent bots to gain pricing […]
Balough
March 18, 2015
Realtors and small businesses should take simple steps to protect themselves from crimes and fraud on the internet, Richard C. Balough said at a meeting of the Northern Illinois Commercial Association of Realtors. Those steps include keeping malware software up to date, not clicking on links within emails, blocking pop-ups, and routinely backing up data. […]
Balough
March 5, 2015
One Supreme Court Justice is ready to hear a case on whether online purchasers should pay a use tax regardless of where the seller is located. Currently, states can collect taxes only if the seller has a “presence” in the state—a holding Justice Anthony Kennedy apparently wants reversed. Justice Kennedy expressed his strong view in […]
Balough
March 4, 2015
Google, Inc. won a preliminary injunction stopping the Mississippi Attorney General from enforcing a 79-page subpoena or bringing a civil or criminal charge against Google under Mississippi law for making accessible third-party content to Internet users. In a brief order, the trial court found that Google had a substantial likelihood of prevailing on the merits in […]
