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Today: The FTC sued Hims & Hers for sharing patient health information with advertising platforms despite privacy promises. EPIC and CDT urged the FCC to reconsider invasive Know Your Customer requirements that would mandate collection of government ID from all phone subscribers. Trump asked the Supreme Court to overturn the $83.3 million E. Jean Carroll defamation verdict on presidential immunity grounds.
FTC Files Lawsuit Against Hims & Hers for Privacy Violations
Summary: The Federal Trade Commission, joined by Utah and California, sued telehealth provider Hims & Hers for sharing sensitive patient health information with third-party advertising platforms including Snap and Meta while simultaneously promising customers their medical records would only be accessed by healthcare providers. The company shared customer lists and embedded third-party tracking technologies that disclosed website visitor actions related to sensitive conditions including sexual health and mental health treatment. The FTC alleges violations of the FTC Act's prohibition on unfair and deceptive practices.
Costco Settles Misleading Email Class Action for $14 Million
Summary: Costco agreed to a $14 million class action settlement over allegations it sent misleading sales emails to consumers. The settlement provides compensation to affected consumers who received the promotional communications.
iQ Credit Union Settles Overdraft Fee Class Action for $750,000
Summary: iQ Credit Union agreed to a $750,000 class action settlement over allegations of unfair overdraft and NSF fees. No claim form is required for affected customers to receive compensation.
Trump Petitions Supreme Court to Overturn $83.3 Million Carroll Defamation Verdict
Summary: President Trump asked the Supreme Court to overturn the $83.3 million jury award to journalist E. Jean Carroll in her defamation case, arguing the verdict wrongly eviscerates presidential immunity. Trump's lawyers contend the Second Circuit failed to determine whether his statements were entitled to immunity after the Supreme Court's 2024 ruling indicated most presidential public communications likely fall within immunity protection. The federal government separately filed requesting the Court decide whether then-Attorney General Bondi's request to recertify Trump's statements as official acts should have been granted. This petition is separate from Trump's earlier appeal of a $5 million judgment in Carroll's sexual abuse case, which the Court denied in June 2026.
Lululemon Faces Class Action Over Retained Tariff Windfall
Summary: A proposed class action alleges Lululemon unlawfully retained millions of dollars in tariff-related price increases paid by consumers after the Supreme Court struck down the underlying tariffs. Plaintiffs claim customers are entitled to refunds for the tariff costs that were passed through but later invalidated.
Federal Judge Rules DOJ's Portland Police Investigation Undermined by AG's Public Statements
Summary: Federal Judge Michael Simon ruled the DOJ's attempt to leverage a 2013 Portland Police Bureau consent decree over excessive force was conducted in bad faith after Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon publicly announced a "full investigation" via social media before proper legal process. The DOJ cited a settlement paragraph addressing treatment of people with mental illness to demand thousands of documents related to the arrest of conservative influencer Nick Sortor during anti-ICE protests, despite the settlement containing no provisions about speech suppression. The court rejected the government's motion.
Former FCC Officials Condemn ABC License Review as First Amendment Violation
Summary: A bipartisan coalition of former FCC officials filed comments blasting Chairman Brendan Carr's early ownership review of ABC's eight broadcast licenses as "a grave violation of both the Communications Act and the Constitution." The officials argued the review is a pretense to punish ABC and Disney for speech critical of the Trump administration, including The View's hosting of Democratic candidates and ABC journalism. Former Chairman Mark Fowler stated "Just because the FCC issues licenses doesn't make it the speech police." The officials urged the FCC to terminate its investigations and rescind its news distortion policy that Carr has used to threaten journalistic freedom.
EPIC and CDT Oppose FCC Know Your Customer Expansion
Summary: EPIC and the Center for Democracy & Technology filed comments urging the FCC to reconsider or significantly narrow proposed rules expanding Know Your Customer requirements for voice service providers. The proposal would mandate collection and four-year retention of name, physical address, government-issued ID number, and alternate phone number for all new and renewing phone customers. EPIC and CDT argued the requirements would severely harm anonymous access to phones, burden freedom of expression, put subscribers at risk of data breaches, and cut off vulnerable populations lacking government ID from essential communications services. The organizations noted most robocalls originate overseas and the domestic data collection would not affect foreign actors, making the privacy harms unjustified by unclear benefits.
GDPR Complaint Filed Against dict.cc for 1,741-Partner Consent Request
Summary: Privacy advocacy organization noyb filed a GDPR complaint with the Austrian Data Protection Authority against online dictionary dict.cc for requesting user consent to share personal data with 1,741 partner companies via a single click. Reading all partner privacy policies would require approximately 170 hours, making informed consent impossible under GDPR requirements that consent be freely given, informed, specific, and unambiguous. The complaint requests the DPA order deletion of unlawfully processed data, notification to all data recipients, and fines to prevent future violations. Noyb noted this practice is common across websites relying on online advertising, eight years after GDPR took effect.
Flock ALPR Expansion Increases False Positive Rate
Summary: Expansion of Flock Safety's automated license plate reader network has led to increased false positives, including incidents where Range Rover journalist Joel Felder was detained by Minneapolis police after Flock cameras misread New Jersey plates with smaller digits. Officers tracked the vehicle for days based on false stolen vehicle alerts. A separate incident involved Texas police using Flock to track someone potentially seeking an abortion after leaving state. Flock has made no effort to limit abusive access until forced by customers or outside pressure.
Legal Experts Propose Limiting Supreme Court's Judicial Review Power
Summary: Legal scholars are proposing reforms to limit Supreme Court authority following a contentious term, including a "consensus rule" requiring 7-2, 8-1, or 9-0 supermajority votes before the Court can strike down federal laws. Harvard Law Professor Nikolas Bowie testified before the House Subcommittee calling for an end to "judicial supremacy" and proposing Congress include specific judicial review standards in legislation. The proposals represent alternatives to court expansion or term limits, though implementation would likely require constitutional amendment or the Court overruling foundational precedent from Marbury v. Madison.
China Proposes Civil Lawsuit Framework for Foreign Nationals
Summary: China drafted legislation allowing foreign individuals and organizations to be sued for any "illegal act" that "harms" Chinese national or public interests, with no enumerated list of qualifying conduct. The open-ended standard gives Chinese courts discretion to define illegality, harm, and national interest without the filters and notice requirements protecting domestic defendants. Foreign defendants would face broader exposure with fewer procedural protections than Chinese citizens under the asymmetric framework.
Trump Administration Expands "Radical Left Terrorism" Prosecutions Under NSPM-7
Summary: Presidential national security memorandum NSPM-7, issued September 2025 without congressional approval, authorizes preemptive law enforcement against Americans based on political ideology rather than planned violence. The memo identifies "anti-Christian," "anti-capitalism," or "anti-American" views as terrorism indicators and empowers multiagency task forces to investigate perceived threats from the political left. The DOJ has used this framework to convict activists and impose decades-long prison sentences. Secretary of State Marco Rubio's Ministerial on Political Terrorism drew 65 countries to coordinate international action against antifa-aligned networks.
Telehealth Privacy: Audit all third-party tracking pixels on healthcare websites. FTC jurisdiction extends to HIPAA-exempt direct-to-consumer health services, requiring truthful privacy policies that accurately describe advertising platform data sharing.
FCC Know Your Customer: Monitor the FCC's proposed expansion of identity verification requirements for voice services. Prepare to submit comments if your organization provides telecommunications services or represents affected populations.
GDPR Consent Management: EU-facing websites should limit consent requests to vendors users can reasonably evaluate. Consent to 1,000+ partners via single click does not meet GDPR's "informed consent" standard and exposes organizations to enforcement.
ALPR Systems: Law enforcement agencies should implement verification procedures before stops based solely on automated plate readers. Document policies preventing use of ALPR for tracking constitutionally protected interstate travel.
Presidential Immunity Litigation: Organizations subject to lawsuits by current or former presidents should monitor Supreme Court developments on presidential immunity scope, particularly regarding statements made in official versus personal capacity.