Law and Society Commons^™

Resisting Face Surveillance With Copyright Law, Amanda Levendowski

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

Face surveillance is animated by deep-rooted demographic and deployment biases that endanger marginalized communities and threaten the privacy of all. But current approaches have not prevented its adoption by law enforcement. Some companies have offered voluntary moratoria on selling the technology, leaving many others to fill in the gaps. Legislators have enacted regulatory oversight at the state and city levels, but a federal ban remains elusive. Both approaches require vast shifts in practical and political will, each with drawbacks. While we wait, face surveillance persists. This Article suggests a new possibility: face surveillance is fueled by unauthorized copies and reproductions …

Forensic Discoverability Of Ios Vault Applications, Alissa Gilbert, Kathryn C. Seigfried-Spellar

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

Vault Applications are used to store potentially sensitive information on a smartphone; and are available on Android and iOS. The purpose of using these applications could be used to hide potential evidence or illicit photos. After comparing five different iOS photo vaults, each vault left evidence and photos behind. However, of the three forensic toolkits used, each produced different results in their scans of the phone. The media left behind was due to the photo vaults not protecting their information as claimed, and using basic obfuscation techniques in place of security controls. Future research will look at how newer security …

The Rise Of 5g Technology: How Internet Privacy And Protection Of Personal Data Is A Must In An Evolving Digital Landscape, Justin Rabine

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

No abstract provided.

A Proportionality-Based Framework For Government Regulation Of Digital Tracing Apps In Times Of Emergency, Sharon Bassan

Dickinson Law Review (2017-Present)

Times of emergency present an inherent conflict between the public interest and the preservation of individual rights. Such times require granting emergency powers to the government on behalf of the public interest and relaxing safeguards against government actions that infringe rights. The lack of theoretical framework to assess governmental decisions in times of emergency leads to a polarized and politicized discourse about potential policies, and often, to public distrust and lack of compliance.

Such a discourse was evident regarding Digital Tracing Apps (“DTAs”), which are apps installed on cellular phones to alert users that they were exposed to people who …

Submission To The Province Of Nova Scotia On Its Review Of The Intimate Images And Cyber-Protection Act - Leaf, Suzie Dunn, Rosel Kim

Reports & Public Policy Documents

The Women’s Legal Education and Action Fund (LEAF) commends the Nova Scotia government for reviewing its Intimate Images and Cyber-protection Act (the Act) and seeking public input for this review. Nova Scotia has been, and continues to be, a leader in Canada for its role in advancing innovative laws and supports for people targeted by technology-facilitated violence (TFV), digital abuse, and the non-consensual distribution of intimate images (NCDII). As these forms of harmful behaviour evolve and become better understood, it is important to revisit this legislation to assess whether it is providing meaningful and accessible responses to such serious social …

You Are Not A Commodity: A More Efficient Approach To Commercial Privacy Rights, Benjamin T. Pardue

Washington Law Review

United States common law provides four torts for privacy invasion: (1) disclosure of private facts, (2) intrusion upon seclusion, (3) placement of a person in a false light, and (4) appropriation of name or likeness. Appropriation of name or likeness occurs when a defendant commandeers the plaintiff’s recognizability, typically for a commercial benefit. Most states allow plaintiffs who establish liability to recover defendants’ profits as damages from the misappropriation under an “unjust enrichment” theory. By contrast, this Comment argues that such an award provides a windfall to plaintiffs and contributes to suboptimal social outcomes. These include overcompensating plaintiffs and incentivizing …

Deepfake Privacy: Attitudes And Regulation, Matthew B. Kugler, Carly Pace

Northwestern University Law Review

Using only a series of images of a person’s face and publicly available software, it is now possible to insert the person’s likeness into a video and show them saying or doing almost anything. This “deepfake” technology has permitted an explosion of political satire and, especially, fake pornography. Several states have already passed laws regulating deepfakes, and more are poised to do so. This Article presents three novel empirical studies that assess public attitudes toward this new technology. In our main study, a representative sample of the U.S. adult population perceived nonconsensually created pornographic deepfake videos as extremely harmful and …

Alexa Hears With Her Little Ears—But Does She Have The Privilege?, Lauren Chlouber Howell

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract forthcoming.

Liberty And Health, Frank Griffin

University of Arkansas at Little Rock Law Review

Liberty is the essence of human nature and is necessary for optimal health. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the government placed unprecedented restrictions on personal liberty in the name of public health, confining millions of Americans to their homes, forcing hundreds of thousands of businesses and parks to close, shuttering abortion clinics, heavily regulating churches, monitoring gatherings in private homes, restricting interstate travel, and shifting disease burdens onto protected populations. Personal liberty is sustenance for individual health. Medical principles of patient autonomy, patient privacy, and social justice are closely related to legal concepts of personal liberty, the liberty of constitutional privacy, …

23rd Annual Open Government Summit: Access To Public Records Act, Open Meetings Act Powerpoint Presentation 07-30-2021, Office Of Attorney General State Of Rhode Island, Peter F. Neronha

School of Law Conferences, Lectures & Events

No abstract provided.

Bitcoin Searches And Preserving The Third-Party Doctrine, Christine A. Cortez

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract forthcoming.

Privacy In Pandemic: Law, Technology, And Public Health In The Covid-19 Crisis, Tiffany C. Li

Law Faculty Scholarship

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused millions of deaths and disastrous consequences around the world, with lasting repercussions for every field of law, including privacy and technology. The unique characteristics of this pandemic have precipitated an increase in use of new technologies, including remote communications platforms, healthcare robots, and medical Al. Public and private actors alike are using new technologies, like heat sensing, and technologically influenced programs, like contact tracing, leading to a rise in government and corporate surveillance in sectors like healthcare, employment, education, and commerce. Advocates have raised the alarm for privacy and civil liberties violations, but the emergency …

Submission To The Toronto Police Services Board’S Use Of New Artificial Intelligence Technologies Policy- Leaf And The Citizen Lab, Suzie Dunn, Kristen Mj Thomasen, Kate Robertson, Pam Hrick, Cynthia Khoo, Rosel Kim, Ngozi Okidegbe, Christopher Parsons

Reports & Public Policy Documents

We write as a group of experts in the legal regulation of artificial intelligence (AI), technology-facilitated violence, equality, and the use of AI systems by law enforcement in Canada. We have experience working within academia and legal practice, and are affiliated with LEAF and the Citizen Lab who support this letter.

We reviewed the Toronto Police Services Board Use of New Artificial Intelligence Technologies Policy and provide comments and recommendations focused on the following key observations:

1. Police use of AI technologies must not be seen as inevitable
2. A commitment to protecting equality and human rights must be integrated …

Law Library Blog (January 2021): Legal Beagle's Blog Archive, Roger Williams University School Of Law

Law Library Newsletters/Blog

No abstract provided.

Regulating Facial Recognition Technology In An Effort To Avoid A Minority Report Like Surveillance State, Halie B. Peacher

Marquette Intellectual Property & Innovation Law Review

In Steven Spielberg's science fiction film Minority Report, the film focuses on how technology is used in the future, as well as how society uses and understands that technology. Specifically, Minority Report focuses on eye-scanners that allow the police and corporations to track down and identify people on a daily basis. This movie identifies that there is a clear line that must be drawn between an individual's right to privacy and the law enforcement agency's ability to ensure safety. Like the technology in Minority Report, the use of facial recognition technology has led to much debate, mainly focused on privacy …

Digital Gatekeepers, Thomas E. Kadri

Scholarly Works

If in William Blackstone's time we might have thought of a person's home as their castle, in Mark Zuckerberg's time we might say that their website is too. Under cyber-trespass laws like the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, courts have treated online platforms as digital gatekeepers--as property owners that may permit and restrict access to websites much like landowners may do with private land in the real world. If platforms withhold their consent through words or inference, cyber-trespass laws let them enforce their preferences about who may access their services and gather information from the internet. Concerned about reputations and …

Health Information Beyond Pandemic Emergencies: Privacy For Social Justice, Leslie Francis

American University Law Review

The COVID-19 pandemic has forcefully revealed the critical importance of timely information to identify emerging infections, discern patterns of disease, and stop disease spread. Information about individuals both as patients, and as ordinary people in the world is necessary for each of these tasks. Yet the implications for information use and efforts to achieve social justice are significant.

This Article first surveys information needs as revealed by the pandemic. It then articulates different normative approaches to privacy and confidentiality to develop two implications for privacy and justice: that information gleaned in clinical care and information possessed by public health should …

Post-Pandemic Privacy Law, Tiffany C. Li

American University Law Review

COVID-19, the global pandemic that began in 2019, altered how we live our lives in just about every way imaginable. Some of those changes were obvious— for example, those who were fortunate enough to be able to work from home began working online—while other changes were more subtle. The latter category included unprecedented levels of data collection by governments and organizations purporting to collect information that would help stop the pandemic’s spread. Given the deadly nature of COVID-19, few would question any public health efforts, no matter their impact on privacy. However, the lack of attention to privacy issues during …

Law School News: Rwu Law Dean Seeking To Build On Culture Of Service, Innovation 12/09/2020, Barry Bridges, Roger Williams University School Of Law

Life of the Law School (1993- )

No abstract provided.

Reflections On The Use Of Facial Recognition Technology During Covid-19, Gary Kok Yew Chan

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

During the COVID-10 pandemic, infected persons have been quarantined in segregated facilities. Individuals who have been in contact with the infected persons may be subject to self-isolation measures or stay-home notices. Technological tools such as proximity and contact tracing apps are used to identify those who have been in close contact with infected persons. The contact tracing QR code used in Singapore's SafeEntry requires the submission of personal information (including names and identification numbers) prior to entry into certain public places such as malls, factories and restaurants. Robots, in addition to designated human officers, have been delpoyed to maintain social …

Cryptography, Passwords, Privacy, And The Fifth Amendment, Gary C. Kessler, Ann M. Phillips

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

Military-grade cryptography has been widely available at no cost for personal and commercial use since the early 1990s. Since the introduction of Pretty Good Privacy (PGP), more and more people encrypt files and devices, and we are now at the point where our smartphones are encrypted by default. While this ostensibly provides users with a high degree of privacy, compelling a user to provide a password has been interpreted by some courts as a violation of our Fifth Amendment protections, becoming an often insurmountable hurdle to law enforcement lawfully executing a search warrant. This paper will explore some of the …

The Law Of Black Mirror - Syllabus, Yafit Lev-Aretz, Nizan Packin

Open Educational Resources

Using episodes from the show Black Mirror as a study tool - a show that features tales that explore techno-paranoia - the course analyzes legal and policy considerations of futuristic or hypothetical case studies. The case studies tap into the collective unease about the modern world and bring up a variety of fascinating key philosophical, legal, and economic-based questions.

22nd Annual Open Government Summit: Office Of The Attorney General: Access To Public Records Act & Open Meetings Act, Attorney General State Of Rhode Island

School of Law Conferences, Lectures & Events

No abstract provided.

Sharenting And The (Potential) Right To Be Forgotten, Keltie Haley

Indiana Law Journal

Part I of this Note serves as an evaluation of parental use of social media and

further seeks to draw attention to the social and developmental impact parental

oversharing can have on children. Part II examines the tension between parents’

constitutional rights to direct the upbringing of their children, as well as their First

Amendment interest in online expression, and their children’s interest in personal

data security and privacy. Part III provides an overview of the European Union’s

right to be forgotten framework in the sharenting context and considers the

plausibility of implementing such a framework in the United States. …

Real You Meets Virtual You: It Is Time For Consumers To Regain Power Online, Neeka Hodaie

Seattle Journal for Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Privacy Dependencies, Solon Barocas, Karen Levy

Washington Law Review

This Article offers a comprehensive survey of privacy dependencies—the many ways that our privacy depends on the decisions and disclosures of other people. What we do and what we say can reveal as much about others as it does about ourselves, even when we don’t realize it or when we think we’re sharing information about ourselves alone. We identify three bases upon which our privacy can depend: our social ties, our similarities to others, and our differences from others. In a tie-based dependency, an observer learns about one person by virtue of her social relationships with others—family, friends, or other …

The Limits And Possibilities Of Data-Driven Antitrafficking Efforts, Jennifer Musto Ph.D.

Georgia State University Law Review

An examination of technology in the countertrafficking space reveals recurring tensions between law enforcement and rights-based approaches. It also illuminates assumptions, such as the one that posits more law enforcement-focused, nonstate-actor-supported data-driven efforts are necessary to securing justice for people in trafficking situations. However, a closer look at how technology is used and by whom also invites us to ask different questions and to leverage the power of our all-too-human creative potential in thinking about how to value and prioritize data ethics, transparency, and accountability in future countertrafficking work.

Smart Homes: The Next Fourth Amendment Frontier, Christina A. Robinson

University of Miami Race & Social Justice Law Review

Under the third-party search doctrine, an individual does not have a reasonable expectation of privacy in information he or she voluntarily discloses to third parties. “Always on” in-home technology creates recordings of unsuspecting consumers in their most intimate spaces and sends them to third party companies and their affiliates, which makes this information subject to warrantless search by law enforcement under the third- search doctrine. The third-party search doctrine is ill-suited to the digital age, where consumers are routinely required to volunteer information to third parties in order to access digital content. This Note suggests that a warrant should be …

Criminalizing Asylum: Dna Testing Asylum Seekers Violates Privacy Rights, Scarlett L. Montenegro

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

Introduction.

On June 16, 2015, President Trump announced his 2016 presidential campaign and claimed that Mexicans are criminals who “[h]ave lots of problems . . . they’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists . . . It’s coming from all over . . . Latin America.” President Trump has publicly expressed his hostility towards immigrants by calling them “animals” and blaming them for drugs and gangs in the United States. While in office, President Trump tweeted that immigrants were invading the United States and suggested that “we must immediately, with no Judges or Court Cases, bring them back from …

Zoning For Families, Sara C. Bronin

Indiana Law Journal

Is a group of eight unrelated adults and three children living together and sharing meals, household expenses, and responsibilities—and holding themselves out to the world to have long-term commitments to each other—a family? Not according to most zoning codes—including that of Hartford, Connecticut, where the preceding scenario presented itself a few years ago. Zoning, which is the local regulation of land use, almost always defines family, limiting those who may live in a dwelling unit to those who satisfy the zoning code’s definition. Often times, this definition is drafted in a way that excludes many modern living arrangements and preferences. …