Why 2016 Will Be a Big Year for Big Data
San Francisco partner Mark Mao and Richmond associate Reade Jacob had their article – “ Why 2016 Will Be a Big Year for Big Data” – published January 13 in Law360. “The coming year will raise many questions about how e-commerce, social media and ‘ad tech’ may continue collecting and using consumer data. Last year, legal developments left organizations that store and collect consumer information to wonder: (1) What are the limitations of data collection on the Internet; (2) how can data be used; and (3) what are ‘best practices’ going forward?” the duo lay out in the opening of their article. “Interestingly, the Federal Trade Commission began the year by trying to answer each of those questions, with a report [that suggests] the FTC will police data practices even more aggressively this year by affirmatively setting certain policies. The FTC report also foreshadows new battles that will be drawn between industry and activists.” The article takes a look at the FTC’s report.