Scott L. Vernick was quoted in the Law360
article, "Landmark FTC Win Fuels Uncertainty for Data Breach
Targets." Full text can be found in the April 8, 2014, issue,
but a synopsis is noted below.
A federal court declared on Monday that the Federal Trade
Commission has the authority to bring lawsuits against companies
over allegedly lax data security practices.
"The ruling removes any doubt that the FTC is here to
stay," said Scott Vernick, a noted privacy attorney. "Not
only will they be able to continue to bring extensive and
aggressive enforcement actions as they have done in the past, but
now, they have another arrow in their quiver."
The ruling could leave companies struggling to avoid
lawsuits brought by the regulator, however, as it is a bit vague on
what constitutes "reasonable" safeguards.
