Header graphic for print
MoFo Tech A blog dedicated to information, trend spotting & analysis for science- & tech-based companies

Category Archives: Privacy + Data Security

Subscribe to Privacy + Data Security RSS Feed

Cookie Monster

When it comes to venue, cookie cases are anything but cookie-cutter Marketers have an insatiable interest to know more about their customers, and the “cookies” they plant in those customers’ computers reveal much of what they need to know. The result has been more focused marketing and more personalized ads, but this tracking has also… Continue Reading

Bring Your Own Hassles

How to manage the explosion of employee-owned devices Time was, organizations provided employees with the computer hardware they needed for their jobs. Today, many workers prefer to use the same device for business and personal use. Organizations have signed on to accommodate employee demand, but also in the hope of saving IT costs. But “Bring… Continue Reading

Internal Investigations: Best Practices

An internal investigation is any effort to gather and analyze facts to help make a decision. Morrison & Foerster managing partner Craig Martin has overseen more than a dozen such efforts. His advice: Understand the purpose of the investigation and how you will use the findings before you start. Reassess scope as the investigation proceeds. … Continue Reading

Re Advertising: Public Input on Online Privacy

In late February the Obama administration unveiled a “Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights,” drawn up by a U.S. Department of Commerce task force, based on principles including individual control, transparency, respect for context, and security. This Thursday, July 12th, the Department of Commerce will bring together companies, privacy advocates, academics, and other stakeholders in the… Continue Reading

Rolling in the Deep: Piracy might get the headlines, but industry problems—and solutions—run much deeper

Shortly after the rude arrival of Napster, the pioneering peer-to-peer file-sharing site, in 1999, this uninvited guest was eating the music industry’s lunch and eyeing its supper too.  Within a year, Napster could offer Madonna’s single, “Music,” even before its commercial release, and by 2001 it had more than 26 million users worldwide.  Adverse court… Continue Reading

Informed Advertisers: How to disclose information online and on mobile platforms

Issued in 2000, the Federal Trade Commission’s “Dot Com Disclosures” document helps online businesses avoid deception with guidance on how to disclose “in a clear and conspicuous way” information material to any form of consumer interaction with its products or services. As D. Reed Freeman, Jr., a Morrison & Foerster partner focused on consumer protection… Continue Reading

When will mobile payments finally make it to the U.S.?

In some parts of the world, paying for items with your smartphone is old news. But when will mobile payments come stateside? That depends on how broadly you define m-commerce. “Anything you can do online with your laptop”—buy products, check bank accounts—“people will increasingly do over their mobile phones,” says Nick Holland, senior analyst with… Continue Reading