Now, aside from Bitcoin and other digital currencies spawning from video games and consumer-oriented companies, it’s important to be aware that there are other types of digital currencies or so-called “cryptocurrencies.” These operate more similarly to Bitcoin in how they generally lack a centralized system that assigns value (compared to…
Articles Posted in Technology
What Is A Virtual Currency?
The legality of certain virtual currencies can be murky. While some currencies, like Bitcoin, can be readily traded for goods and services, however, other virtual currencies remain where regulation is more questionable. To that point, the curators of digital economies have hired economists to better model the value of these…
Bitcoin: The New Trend
Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency that has been in the news and in conversations recently for various reasons. While not all retailers will take Bitcoin, and there are fairly good reasons not to, but the cryptocurrency has really taken off. However, despite how much the word “Bitcoin” is used, the nature…
The Petya Ransomware
In March 2017, the WannaCry ransomware attack occurred which was believed to be one of the largest ransomware attacks in history. Discussions of this past attack and who should take the blame has been previously discussed in our blog and newsletter. Now, just a few months later there has been…
Carpenter v. United States
The United States Supreme Court has accepted a new case that implicates cell-phone location privacy. The case of Carpenter v. United States was decided by the Sixth Circuit and now the Supreme Court will issue a decision in the future as to whether the lower court’s decision was correct. The…
The Growing Problem of Identity Theft
Identity theft is an epidemic impacting people across America. During 2016, an estimated 15.4 million consumers experienced some kind of identity theft. This is an increase from 13.1 million in 2015. Another staggering statistic is that 1 in every 16 adults in the United States is a victim of identity…
OneLogin Security Breach
OneLogin recently suffered from a major security breach. This breach has compromised private and confidential information, which is managed by its datacenter. OneLogin provides a service that is used by organizations to secure their data. It is basically a password manager for corporations. It allows employees, customers, and partners to…
Facebook v. Power Ventures: Unlawful Access To Computer Networks
After this month’s discussion on the statutes that prohibit the unauthorized access of email accounts and digital assets, one might wonder how these statutes may apply in a case. However, in the lengthy saga of Facebook v. Power Ventures, the Ninth Circuit issued a determination giving a bright line example…
Fiduciary’s Access Rights To Decedent’s Digital Assets
What happens to a person’s digital assets when he or she passes away? They still have email, social media, and bank accounts. This could be an uncomfortable topic. However, any unauthorized access to a person’s online account that is password protected will constitute a violation of state or federal law.…
Unauthorized Wiretapping Laws
In addition to California’s precautions against unauthorized email access, there are additional Federal measures to protect privacy. Compared to state measures, this gives another way for an individual to seek legal remedies in a federal court. This is broken up into three different statutes, as part of the Electronic Communications…