kamala harris

Obey the law, or else. California cracks down on app developers for privacy

Making good on her promise, California Attorney General Kamala Harris has continued her crackdown on mobile-app developers and companies for not doing more to ensure users' privacy. She announced today that she'll be sending letters to 100 app developers and companies to formally notify them that they're violating California's privacy laws.

"Protecting the privacy of online consumers is a serious law enforcement matter," Harris said in a statement today. "We have worked hard to ensure that app developers are aware of their legal obligations to respect the privacy of Californians, but it is critical … Read more

California AG Kamala Harris on app privacy deal (podcast)

California Attorney General Kamala Harris announced a mobile app privacy agreement today with Apple, Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Hewlett-Packard, and Research In Motion.

The agreement with the companies whose platforms and app stores collectively dominate the mobile app universe, is designed to bring the mobile app industry into compliance with California's existing law that requires companies that collect personal information to have a published privacy policy.

The announcement comes in the wake of several reports of companies uploading user data, sometimes without informing the user or getting permission.

Last week the Federal Trade Commission released a report titled "Mobile … Read more