Insurance Companies May Be Following Your Tweets

Discussing your personal health or emotional well being on social media is not recommended. Health insurance companies, law enforcement, opposing counsel in lawsuits, employers, potential employers, academic institutions, etc... want access to both your public and private social media content. Therefore, everything you put online may one day be used against you.

On October 22, 2011 I discussed some of the reasons why you must be careful about posting online your personal health care status with Angie Goff of NBC 4 in Washington, DC. During the segment, Angie mentioned how Senator McCaskill used Twitter to discuss her progress during her recent 50 pound weight loss. While it may seem like a great idea at first glance to share this type of information with other people who are interested in losing weight it is not advisable.

View more videos at: http://nbcwashington.com.

Insurance companies may utilize your Tweets against you during the underwriting process and/or if and when you have a claim. In the United Kingdom, those who utilize social media may have to pay higher premiums.

Below are several tips regarding social media and health care privacy:

1) Avoid discussing your personal physical or emotional health status online

2) Do not talk about the non-public health status of your online "friends"

3) Do not post about the medications you are taking

To learn more about these issues you may contact me at www.shearlaw.com.

Copyright 2011 by the Law Office of Bradley S. Shear, LLC. All rights reserved.

Missouri repeals social media ban aimed at online student teacher interaction

Missouri repealed its recently enacted student-teacher social media ban which prohibited students and teachers from interacting with each other online. I wrote about the law on August 2, 2011 and at the time stated:

"there is a tremendous lack of understanding regarding social media by elected officials across the country. Does Missouri have a law that bans teachers and students from being able to join the same Churches, Mosques, and Synagogues? Does Missouri have a law that bans teachers from interacting with students in activities outside of the school environment?...This new law is an over-reaction and will most likely soon be challenged and eventually overturned."

Missouri did the right thing in repealing the law because it not only infringed on First Amendment rights but it would also be very difficult if not impossible to enforce. When enacting new legislation lawmakers must understand exactly how the law works and how it may affect constitutional rights.

To learn more about these issues you may contact me at www.shearlaw.com.

Copyright 2011 by the Law Office of Bradley S. Shear, LLC. All rights reserved.

Will the 4th Amendment protect us in the Social Media Age?

Since entering law school in the Fall of 1995, I have watched how the law has evolved to deal with the issues inherent in the Internet Age and now the Social Media Age. The proliferation of cellphones, laptops, Blackberries, iPhones, iPads, Droids, etc... enables us to house our entire lives in one portable electronic device.

It is great to have all of our personal information easily accessible in one place. However, with all of this technology there are many privacy issues that need to be addressed. For example, does the government have the right to access the data contained in our cell phones and other personal electronic devices without a warrant?

In California, Governor Jerry Brown vetoed legislation that would have required a warrant to search the cell phone of a person who has been arrested. This decision by Governor Brown demonstrates a lack of understanding of technology and how we are using it. Cellphones and other personal electronic devices along with our electronic accounts contain a tremendous amount of personal information.

Searching our cell phones, Droids, Blackberries, iPhones, etc....may be akin to searching our homes. Some people keep more private information on their personal electronic devices than in their home so our personal electronic devices should have the same 4th Amendment protections that apply to our homes. California allows law enforcement officials to search a person's cell phone without a warrant if they arrested. However, in Ohio, a warrant is required to search a cell phone unless it is necessary to preserve evidence or unless it is necessary for an officer's safety.

Unless there are exigent circumstances, law enforcement should have no right to search our personal electronic devices unless they have a warrant. We live in a world where all of our personal information can be carried around with us in a small electronic device. Therefore, it is time for the 4th Amendment's protections to account for the Social Media Age.

To learn more about these issues you may contact me at www.shearlaw.com.

Copyright 2011 by the Law Office of Bradley S. Shear, LLC. All rights reserved.

Cleveland's continued misguided attempt at social media criminal law

Cleveland's City Council continues in its misguided attempt to create vague and unconstitutional social media criminal law. Cleveland's City Council is trying again to specifically criminalize the use of electronic media to create flash mobs.

This past summer, Cleveland's City Council tried to regulate the use of social media and fortunately for the citizens of Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson vetoed the flawed legislation. As I told the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Cleveland should utilize its resources to provide its law enforcement officials social media training instead of drafting vague and misguided ordinances that will create more problems. I recommend Cleveland focusing its energy on enforcing its current laws and determining how to apply them to social media.

Maybe Cleveland's City Council should focus its efforts on banning its fans from standing up and cheering at the Brown's games. Oops. Somebody beat them to it.

To learn more about these issues you may contact me at www.shearlaw.com.

Copyright 2011 by the Law Office of Bradley S. Shear, LLC. All rights reserved.

Hank Williams, Social Media Crisis Management, and the Contract Morals Clause

Hank Williams must go into crisis management mode immediately if he wants to retain his corporate marketability. This morning on "Fox and Friends" Williams appeared to compare President Obama to Adolf Hitler. Williams was asked to clarify his initial analogy and he stated that Obama and Vice President Biden are "the enemy." Subsequently, ESPN pulled his opening for this evening's Monday Night Football game.

During the past 23 seasons, Williams has provided an introduction for Monday Night Football based off of his hit song "All My Rowdy Friends Are Coming Over Tonight." If Williams does not want to permanently harm his corporate marketability he must act swiftly and apologize for his remarks. If not, ESPN may permanently remove his opening act from Monday Night Football and the NFL community may distance itself from him in the same manner that CBS ended its relationship with Jimmy (the Greek) Snyder for his comments in 1988 regarding African-American athletes.

A well-drafted morals clause may provide ESPN the ability to terminate its relationship with Williams for his comments without having to pay him for the duration of his contract. A contract morals clause provides a company the ability to terminate the services of an endorser if the endorser engages in activity that is inconsistent with a company's public image.

Williams' response over the next couple days will determine whether the NFL community will continue to embrace him. It is possible the incident may blow over. However, in the Social Media Age one comment, blog post, YouTube video, or Tweet has the ability to forever change one's circumstances. Therefore, the sooner Williams demonstrates remorse the better chance he has of retaining his relationship with ESPN and the NFL.

To learn how to respond to a crisis in the Social Media Age you may contact me at www.shearlaw.com.

Copyright 2011 by the Law Office of Bradley S. Shear, LLC. All rights reserved.