Welcome to the latest issue of This Week in Social Media Law, my weekly roundup of issues at the intersection of social media and the law.
On tap this week: ownership of social media accounts, teachers and online relationships, cybersecurity awareness, Canada's anti-spam law, and the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act. For your liking, tweeting, sharing, recommending, and plus one-ing pleasure:
Yours, mine, and ours - whose accounts are they, anyway?
The legal battle over the ownership of social media accounts is just beginning, and it's likely to be a messy fight. Case in point: the most recent lawsuit, Linda Eagle's dispute with her former employer Edcomm over her LinkedIn account, involves issues that touch on a wide range of federal and state laws, including the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (the federal anti-hacking law), trademark law (related to confusion or the likelihood of confusion), and state law claims relating to conversion (regarding a company laptop), misappropriation (of the account), and invasion of privacy.
Attorneys Martha Zackin and Brandon Willenberg (law firm Mintz Levin) think that a clear and comprehensive social media policy can help clean up the mess before it starts. Travis Crabtree (from law firm Looper Reed) agrees, but wonders if fighting over social media accounts is worth the trouble:
"It seems to me that Eagle is spending a lot of efforts for loss of access to her account for 22 weeks... What was the real damage? From Edcomm's perspective, what was the real gain? If there were trade secrets on the account, there are prohibitions and ways to address that without seizing the entire account (or at least seizing it for that long)."
Beware the "Parental Paparazzi"
Should teachers be "friends" with the parents of their students? Probably not, writes Jackie Wernz from law firm Franczek Radelet, because it could expose the teachers - and the school districts they work for - to a wide range of unintended consequences. Like charges of misconduct for posts deemed inappropriate by the "parental paparazzi," or confusion over official and unofficial school-related communications. Perhaps not surprisingly, Wernz advocates for policies, procedures, and guidelines that cover social networking (without crossing the line drawn by the NLRB, of course). But the best answer might be to just say "no." (Franczek Radelet)
October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month
But it may be too early to start celebrating. President Obama's proclamation of October as National Cybersecurity Awareness Month is a reminder, write Amy Malone and Cynthia Larose of law firm Mintz Levin, that everyone - from individuals to government agencies to small businesses to law enforcement - needs to understand cyber threats and take measures to protect online privacy and security. (You don't have to take their word for it: the FBI and the country's top three financial institutions will tell you the same thing.) Don't expect National Cybersecurity Awareness month to be the end of it, however. Growing concern is leading the government to take a more active role in addressing cybersecurity issues, which is likely to include an executive order on cybersecurity that covers some of the same ground as the failed Cybersecurity Act of 2012.
How do you say "anti-spam" in French Canadian?
Canada's anti-spam law is scheduled to take effect in 2013, but businesses can start preparing now (even if all of the rules haven't been finalized). The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission just issued two information bulletins on its rules, which cover obtaining consent and effective unsubscribe mechanisms. Who says social media and internet law isn't sexy?
At this rate, the rules may never catch up with the technology...
After more than two years in the making, the Federal Trade Commission's recommended changes to the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act could be finalized by the end of the year. The FTC wants the rules to include mobile devices, geo-location information, and behavioral advertising tracking cookies, and to make the rules applicable to a broader range of websites. (Sheppard Mullin)