Government Lessons from AMEX V. Vinhnee

"In 2003, California resident Vee Vinhnee filed for bankruptcy in U.S. Bankruptcy Court. He owed American Express more than $40,000 on his credit cards. American Express (Amex) sued Vinhnee to recover the balances owed on the cards. In Vinhnee vs. American Express Travel Related Services Company Inc., Vinhnee won his case without a lawyer and without appearing in court" .

81% of lawyers using evidence from Social Networking platforms. A recent study from PEW found that 66% of divorce cases used Facebook content as a primary case of evidence - this is an alarmingly high figure for lawyers not well versed in managing social media content, but also unsurprising given the ways in which we use social media in our everyday lives. This is not just limited to divorce cases, as the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers report that 81% if lawyers find court-worthy evidence from social networking platforms - aiding cases all across the Family Law spectrum from divorce, custody, alimony and more.

Three smart tips to prevent social media scandal Social media scandal. It’s a dreaded thought for any communications manager. And it seems that more cases of social media missteps are published every week. Most recently, there was a public outcry against the Latah County Sheriff’s Office, which published a flippant Facebook post about a young man, wanted for several crimes, who subsequently committed suicide. It was a sad story which again raised questions about organizations using social media to communicate with the public. Do the benefits outweigh the risks?

Why Your Records Retention Policy Should Include Social Media The social networking explosion of the past few years has taken many organizations somewhat by surprise. As Facebook and Twitter began to grow exponentially, most companies and agencies still looked askance at such platforms, dismissed them as juvenile, and (in some cases) even banned them from the workplace. Until now. When it became apparent that social media was utilized by all ages and demographics, organizations began to see the benefits in connecting socially with their clients, customers, or citizens. Social media has become a platform for customer service, crowd-sourcing, advertising, promoting, and beyond. So it is no surprise that around 60% of companies are using social media in some way. Numerous articles and discussions have centered around best practices for utilizing these tools to gain the greatest market advantage, present the ideal company image, reach the largest audience, and so forth. But many organizations have failed to recognize the legal ramifications of this new communications medium, especially where records retention regulations are concerned. Without a policy for preserving social media activity properly, companies could find themselves out of compliance or unprepared for records requests.

Protecting Student Data on Social Media and the Web With advances in technology and online activity, both for recreational and educational purposes, concerns have been long growing for the safety and use of children and student’s data collected in the use of certain apps and websites. Not only is this concern regarding the collection and use of children’s data, but the onus on those liable for protecting, and maintaining a balancing act between the benefits of technology for educational purposes.

Astroturfing is an illegal false advertising cyber scam, utilised by companies, organisations, politicians and individuals to boost company reputation, search results and public opinion - through unauthentic and questionable means. This online campaigning consists of fake reviews on websites and forums such as Yelp or the Apple iTunes store, lobbyists running fake blogs on behalf of clients or employers and other falsified social media accounts ensuring the manipulation of Google search results.

Nucci v. Target Corp [2015]

These days, ignoring social media evidence in investigations and litigation is akin to leaving a crucial witness unquestioned. But as the case of Federico v. Lincoln Military Housing demonstrates, navigating this terrain can be a costly minefield.

United States v. Vayner 2014 2014 was a landmark year in establishing the admissibility and stance of screenshots and printouts of social media in litigation, with one of the more notable examples of this being the evaluation of a printout from the Russian equivalent of Facebook (VK.com) in United States v. Vayner.

The Insta-Scam (and Instaspam components) is a relatively new cyber scam operated on social media and targeting users on mediums such as Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.