The digitization of our economy has streamlined company operations but has brought with it persistent, ongoing cyberattacks. Successful attacks disrupt business operations, are costly to remediate, and can compromise confidential and personal information—including client and employee information. These compromises can significantly impact revenue and trust in the company and often result in stock prices dropping.
Jessica Engler
Louisiana to Extend COPPA-esque Parental Permission Requirements for Social Media Use
When President Joe Biden expressed his concerns about children’s Internet usage during his 2023 State of the Union address, Louisiana certainly agreed with that concern. On June 8, 2023, the Louisiana legislature enrolled for Governor John Bel Edwards a bill intended to extend parental consent requirements on social media use by children under the age…
No Free Use in the Purple Rain – U.S. Supreme Court Finds License of Andy Warhol’s “Orange Prince” Infringes Photographer’s Copyright
When award-winning photographer Lynn Goldsmith snapped a portrait of the artist formerly known as Prince for Newsweek in 1981, she could not have predicted the cultural and legal impact the pop legend’s portrait would have. In 1984, Vanity Fair sought to license the photograph for an “artist reference” in a story about the musician. Goldsmith…
New Allen Toussaint Legacy Act Creates a Right of Publicity in Louisiana
On June 15, 2022, Governor John Bel Edwards signed into law Act No. 425, S.B. 426, named the “Allen Toussaint Legacy Act.”[1] The Act is named after the late Allen Toussaint, a famous New Orleans musician, songwriter, and producer. Toussaint was known for hits such as “Java,” “Fortune Teller,” “Southern Nights,” “Working in the…
Russia – Ukraine Conflict Likely to Impact U.S. Businesses
Russia’s unprovoked attack on the Ukraine has not been restricted to land. Ukrainian tech resources have been hit by cyber-attacks, particularly against its government and banking systems in a coordinated effort by Russia’s military intelligence unit.[1] Several websites of Ukrainian government departments and banks were hit with distributed denial of service attacks (DDoS), which…
Virginia Enacts Its Consumer Data Protection Act, the Second Comprehensive Data Privacy Law in the United States
In March 2021, Virginia’s Governor Ralph Northam signed the Consumer Data Protection Act (CDPA), making Virginia the second state to enact comprehensive data privacy protections for its residents. If you are feeling blindsided by this news, you are not alone.[1] Unlike California’s Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and Privacy Rights Act (CPRA) or the European…
The Trademark Modernization Act of 2020 Adds New Tools to Fight Unused Trademarks and Implied Presumptions for Trademark Infringement Plaintiffs
Buried in the 5,500-page Consolidated Appropriations Act for 2021 among various COVID-19 relief was the Trademark Modernization Act of 2020 (“TMA”). The TMA, which will become effective on December 27, 2021, makes several important amendments to federal trademark law (the Lanham Act) intended to modernize trademark application examinations and clean house of trademark registrations for…
A Work from Home or In Office Essential: Cyber Insurance
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced a technological revolution, with many companies switching their workforce to remote solutions for the first time and now recalling those same workers back to offices as cities move to reopen. While working remotely has had significant benefits, it has also presented new and different risks to company data security. Now…
Cybersecurity Considerations for an Increasingly Remote Workforce
Across the United States and the world, business are closing their doors and moving to remote work to help minimize the spread of COVID-19. Many of these closures have been abrupt, unexpected, and, in some cases, chaotic. As famously stated in Sun-Tzu’s The Art of War, “In the midst of chaos, there is also…
HIPAA Privacy Rule Regulatory Response to COVID-19
The COVID-19 pandemic is reshaping many areas of law and regulation as businesses grapple with maintaining compliance, while also responding to the fluid needs of their clients and employees. In an effort to ease the regulatory burden on businesses, certain government agencies have made announcements that their offices will exercise discretion or waive certain noncompliance…