Google Settles for $90 Million over Play Store Fees

Google agreed to pay $90 million to settle a legal dispute with app developers who alleged that Google has abused its power to impose legal and technical barriers on the app ecosystem, charged app developers fees of up to 30% of in-app purchases, and forced them to only use Google’s billing system. The settlement would resolve a class action suit ...

French Regulator Publishes Q&A on the Use of Google Analytics

Following its decision earlier this year to ban the use of Google Analytics for the processing of personal data from France in the absence of additional safeguards, the French data protection authority (CNIL) published a set of questions and answers on the use of Google Analytics by French data controllers.

CNIL reiterated that the existence of the Standard Contractual Clauses ...

Israel Comprehensively Reforms Licensing of Communication Services

The Knesset, the Israeli legislature, voted for the final approval of an amendment to the Communications Law (Telecom and Broadcasts), 5742-1982, repealing the need for most telecommunications service providers to obtain a specific telecom license through a complicated and bureaucratic procedure previously required. The amendment becomes effective on October 2, 2022.

Before the amendment, anyone desiring to provide telecommunications services ...

U.S. Congress Presents a Federal Bipartisan Privacy Bill

A group of bipartisan legislators presented a new congressional privacy bill in early June. The bill, if enacted, would pre-empt most state data privacy laws. The bill also would allow individuals to opt out of targeted advertisement and to assert legal claims against companies who unlawfully sell their data, among other things. This is the first major step toward a ...

Petition to Israel’s High Court of Justice to Ban the Bulk Collection of Telecom Data

The Association for Civil Rights in Israel asserted a petition with the High Court of Justice to judicially amend the Israeli Security Agency (ISA) Law, 5762-2002, to limit the ISA’s surveillance authority regarding telecommunication data granted to it under the law. The petition was filed following the revelation that the ISA had used its powers under the law to surveil ...

Bank of Israel Authorizes Banking Corporations to Use Cloud Computing in Core Systems

Israeli banking corporations are now allowed to use cloud computing in their core systems and core activities, according to an amendment to the Circular on Proper Conduct of Banking Business concerning cloud computing. Until recently, this ‘core systems’ use was expressly prohibited by the circular. This change in approach, as the Supervisor of Banks clarified, stems from the recognition that ...

U.S. Senators Publish a Bill on the Regulation of the Cryptocurrency Market

Tax exemptions for crypto transactions under $200, classification of virtual assets as securities and commodities, and an obligation to perform an analysis of energy consumption in digital asset markets – are some of the provisions in the U.S. federal Responsible Financial Innovation Bill, which aims to provide economic certainty and clarity in the cryptocurrency and blockchain sectors.

Among other matters, ...

Twitter to Pay $150 Million to Settle FTC Charges

Twitter has agreed to pay a $150 million fine to settle allegations that it had violated the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) rules by using personal data for targeted advertising without obtaining users’ prior consent, for over six years. In addition to the monetary fine, the social media giant was ordered to change its practices to comply with the law.

According ...