Privacy Law Commons^™

Moral Panic Or Public Health Crisis? Lessons From Drugs And Gambling For “Addictive” Design, Matthew B. Lawrence, Haomin (Kevin) Yan

Seattle University Law Review

Alcohol, automobiles, guns, lottery, loot boxes, meat, music, opioid painkillers, processed foods, prop bets, slot machines, television, tobacco, violent video games. Over the last century each of these has been subject to concerns—some might even say “moral panics”—from parents and policymakers about avoidable harms to kids and adults. In some cases we look back with the benefit of hindsight and dismiss those concerns as naïve or moralistic. In others we look back at them as justified or as having come too late to check an expanding industry before it did unfathomable harm while growing so powerful that it became all …

Responding To Digital Addiction, Ned Snow

Seattle University Law Review

In Unwired: Gaining Control over Addictive Technologies, Professor Gaia Bernstein calls our attention to the growing problem of digital addiction. Digital addiction may sound like something out of a science-fiction novel or something that does not raise the same sort of real-life practical concerns as are present in a physical health crisis or an economic decline. But as Bernstein presents the evidence, we learn that the consequences of digital addiction can be just as harmful as a serious disease or a financial depression. Cognitive development disorders, anxiety, emotional depression, social isolation, and other mental health ills can be debilitating—as much …

The Ai Doppelgänger Dilemma: Cloned Voices In The Music Industry, Elizabeth Shields

Seattle University Law Review

With the rise of generative artificial intelligence (AI), there has been an influx of “voice clones”—deep-learning algorithms that create synthetic speech to realistically mimic human voices. Celebrities and, in particular, music artists, have been subjected to the proliferation of AI voice clones on social media platforms like TikTok and streaming platforms such as Spotify. Despite music utilizing AI voice clones having amassed much popularity, this technology can be harmful and highly invasive to musicians whose livelihoods often depend on their distinct voices. While legal scholars have attempted to articulate various rights that could protect a person’s voice, individuals are largely …

Let The Sunshine In: Crafting Constitutional Transparency Regulations For Content Moderation, Caitlin Ring Carlson

Seattle University Law Review

In response to public concern about the impact of social media, legislators in some U.S. states have developed laws to regulate the process of content moderation. Many include mandatory transparency and disclosure requirements, some of which courts have already deemed an unconstitutional infringement on social media platforms’ right to free expression. This article explores the parameters for crafting constitutional social media transparency regulations using existing U.S. media policy and insights from recent legal challenges. The resulting analysis identifies content neutral transparency requirements that mandate the disclosure of purely factual, non-controversial information as those most likely to withstand judicial scrutiny. Specifically, …

This Is Not A Game: The Addictive Allure Of Digital Companions, Nizan Geslevich Packin, Karni Chagal-Feferkorn

Seattle University Law Review

Artificial Intelligence (AI) agents have become an inescapable part of modern childhood, reshaping education, leisure activities, entertainment, and social interaction. From AI-powered tutors that adapt to individual learning styles to emotionally responsive chatbots that simulate human companionship, these systems promise unprecedented personalization, cognitive stimulation, and social support. However, these benefits mask significant risks that remain unregulated and inadequately addressed.

Although adults are also susceptible to forming deep emotional bonds with AI companions—often trusting them as if they possessed genuine understanding and empathy—children are particularly vulnerable. Their misplaced trust can more severely distort social development, weaken critical thinking, and foster unhealthy …

Dean's Desk: Finding New Ways To Help Diminish Cybersecurity Threats, Christiana Ochoa

Christiana Ochoa (7/22-10/22 Acting; 11/2022-)

In an era when cyberattacks can paralyze hospitals, disrupt elections, and compromise the privacy of millions, the need for innovative cybersecurity and privacy protections has never been more urgent. But it is not just a question of new technologies; strong data protection depends as much on motivating people and organizations to use those technologies and make wise choices to diminish data risk.

The Indiana University Maurer School of Law has spent more than 30 years answering cybersecurity and privacy challenges with a distinctive, holistic approach: an interdisciplinary, human-centered legal education that equips students to lead at the intersection of technology, …

Erasing Illusions: A Statutory Framework For Deletion In U.S. Data Privacy, Kirsten Worden

Texas A&M Law Review

Since the passage of the California Consumer Privacy Act in 2018, states have rushed to pass their own consumer data protection laws, filling the glaring absence of comprehensive federal privacy law in the United States. These state privacy statutes are largely modeled after the European Union’s (“EU’s”) General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”), which introduced the “right to be forgotten.” This right permits EU residents to request that organizations delete their personal information. U.S. state laws have followed the GDPR by adopting a “right to delete.” Yet these new state laws provide little detail about the right to delete and lack …

Gatekeeping Screen Time: Configuring The Regulation Of Addictive Technologies And Kids' Privacy Rights, Gaia Bernstein

Villanova Law Review (1956 - )

No abstract provided.

“Are We There Yet?”: The Long Journey To Defining Motor Home Protections Under The Fourth Amendment, Ilse Ghent

Arkansas Law Review

From the time of the Revolutionary War, United States citizens have prioritized one thing over almost everything else: that “a man’s house is his castle.” This is immortalized in the Fourth Amendment’s prohibition against unreasonable and warrantless searches. The protections granted by the Fourth Amendment are not centered around the rights a person has in their property. Instead, “the principal object of the Fourth Amendment is the protection of privacy rather than property.” This protection is so important that the Supreme Court has been explicitly clear that warrantless searches should only be permitted in the most “exceptional” of circumstances. One …

Adopting Permissioned Blockchain Models To Enhance Consumer Protection And Comply With Consumer Protection Laws, Erika Buenrostro

Featured Student Work

Blockchain technology enables decentralized, peer-to-peer transactions and data management, offering transparency while raising data privacy and consumer protection concerns. As the current administration promotes blockchain adoption, including cryptocurrency, more users and businesses will likely integrate the technology. This thesis provides a framework to help businesses adopt blockchain while ensuring compliance with the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). To prevent data mishandling and legal penalties, consumers and businesses must stay informed about the risks and evolving state privacy laws.

A CCPA-compliant approach retains blockchain’s benefits through a permissioned model, storing only non-personal (neutral) data on-chain while keeping personal information off-chain in …

Betting On Privacy: Safeguarding Data In The Era Of Online Gambling, Yanaisi Gordon

UNLV Gaming Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Hipaa, Sandra B. Wadeh, Victoria Sintes, Anna Olson, Ethan Lowry

SPARK Symposium Presentations

HIPAA is a federal law designed to protect patient privacy by regulating how Protected Health Information is handled, stored, and shared. Violations of HIPAA can result in severe civil and criminal penalties, including fines, lawsuits, and even imprisonment for willful misconduct.

The Illusion Of Inclusion: The False Promise Of The New Governance Project For Content Moderation, Brenda Dvoskin

Fordham Law Review

Because private companies now control the most prominent communication platforms, the most pressing question in the field of content moderation is how to ensure that the governance of public discourse responds to public values. The prevailing approach, given that the state cannot regulate speech directly, is that state regulation can be substituted with audited self-regulation, broad stakeholder participation, and negotiated rulemaking. In this model, which this Article refers to as the “new governance model for content moderation,” companies include advocates as representatives of the public in their processes to govern online speech. Ideally, they negotiate policy goals and share responsibility …

The Ai Doppelgänger Dilemma: Cloned Voices In The Music Industry, Elizabeth Shields

Seattle University Law Review Online

With the rise of generative artificial intelligence (AI), there has been an influx of “voice clones”—deep-learning algorithms that create synthetic speech to realistically mimic human voices. Celebrities and, in particular, music artists, have been subjected to the proliferation of AI voice clones on social media platforms like TikTok and streaming platforms such as Spotify. Despite music utilizing AI voice clones having amassed much popularity, this technology can be harmful and highly invasive to musicians whose livelihoods often depend on their distinct voices. While legal scholars have attempted to articulate various rights that could protect a person’s voice, individuals are largely …

The Extraordinary Extension Of The Video Privacy Protection Act: Why The “Ordinary Course Of Business” Of An Analog Era Is Anything But Ordinary In The Digital World, Elizabeth Gemdjian

Brooklyn Law Review

In the last dozen years, a wide range of companies—from streaming platforms to consumer goods brands to nonprofits—have been the target of lawsuits under an idiosyncratic, outdated law: the Video Privacy Protection Act of 1988 (VPPA). The VPPA focuses only on consumers’ privacy related to video content; it prohibits a party that has data on a consumer’s video viewing history, along with personally identifiable information about that consumer, from disclosing that information without the consumer’s consent. While the VPPA did not get much attention in court until recently, in the past decade, the volume of VPPA-related claims has exploded. This …

The Power Of Procedure: Uncovering The Gap In U.S. Privacy Rights, Bernard Chao, Mandi Abbott

Pepperdine Law Review

As Congress faces increasing pressure to adopt comprehensive privacy legislation, this Article seeks to contribute to the ongoing discussions by exploring critical procedural deficiencies in U.S. privacy laws and their implications for domestic privacy rights and international data flows. This Article makes several key contributions to the field. First, it uses a comparative law perspective to highlight the lack of robust procedural rights and remedies in U.S. privacy law. Second, while many have questioned whether the Court of Jus tice for the European Union will strike down the latest U.S.-EU Data Privacy Framework (the primary mechanism for allowing the transatlantic …

Neurotechnology Works Its Way Forward, Jeremy Ben Merkelson, Wendy Kearns, David Rice, Elyse Sparks

Seattle University Law Review Online

Neurotechnology is an emerging and rapidly advancing field of technology used to collect, process, and analyze brain or nervous system activity. The market is expected to reach $21 billion by 2026.

In a previous article, published in October 2023, we explored the potential of neurotechnology applications in the workplace, like electroencephalogram (EEG) headbands that monitor fatigue and boost safety, software and EEG combination technologies that creates a shortcut to the human brain and optimizes complex decision-making, and earbuds that track focus and stress.

We have continued to study and speak about these issues in various forums, and meanwhile, technology and …

Target(Ed) Advertising, Derek E. Bambauer

UF Law Faculty Publications

Targeted advertising—using data about consumers to customize the ads they receive—is deeply controversial. It also creates a regulatory quandary. Targeted ads generate more money than untargeted ones for apps and online platforms. Apps and platforms depend on this revenue stream to offer free services to users, if not for their financial viability altogether. However, targeted advertising also generates significant privacy risks and consumer resentment. Despite sustained attention to this issue, neither legal scholars nor policymakers have crafted interventions that address both concerns, and existing regulatory regimes for targeted advertising have critical gaps.

This Article makes three key contributions to the …

Comparing Smart City Data Protection Approaches: Digital Consent And The Accountability Framework In Singapore, Wenxi Zhang, Sharanya M Shanmugam, J.G. Allen

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Traditionally, there has been heavy reliance on formal notice and consent models for data protection regimes. However, consent (in particular digital consent) is rarely extended meaningfully in practice, due to behavioural factors including data subjects’ limited cognitive capacity, rational apathy, and dependency on the digital infrastructure around them. Synthesizing legal perspectives with insights drawn from the behavioural and social sciences, this article analyzes the consent problem in the smart city context, where it is exacerbated due to prevailing issues such as economic disincentives for ensuring meaningful consent, since essential urban infrastructure is often provided by private companies. Recognizing the shortcomings …

The Future Of Money: How The Digital Revolution Is Transforming Currencies And Finance, Sohini Banerjee Ms, Pratik Datta Mr

Indian Journal of Law and Technology

The book ‘The Future of Money: How the Digital Revolution is Transforming Currencies and Finance’, written by Eswar Prasad, and published in 2021 by the Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, is timely and thought-provoking. It provides a bird’s eye view of the noteworthy developments in finance in the past few decades, and predicts that we are on the verge of an even more dramatic transformation having significant economic, political, and social ramifications. For this reason, it is richly deserving of a review. This paper aims to critically analyse the same.