California Online Privacy Law Enforcement Starts

Mobile app developers and businesses must review their policies and practices for compliance with federal and state privacy laws. There is no better example today for the reasons needed for the review and update than the recent enforcement actions of the California Attorney General of the California Online Privacy Protection Act (“CalOPPA”). In December, California Attorney General Kamala D. Harris announced a lawsuit against Delta Air Lines, Inc. for its failure to comply with CalOPPA. The Attorney General’s action is the first-ever under CalOPPA, and requests penalties of up to $2,500 for each “violation”. According to the claim, a “violation” occurred each time a copy of the app was downloaded by a California consumer. In the complaint, Harris states that the term “online service” under CalOPPA “broadly covers any service available over the Internet or that connects to the Internet, including Internet- enabled gaming platforms, voice-over Internet protocol services, cloud services, and mobile applications.”