2011 Social Media Law Predictions Update Part II

On January 10, 2011, I made ten predictions for 2011 regarding social media and the law. Now it is time to evaluate my ability to read the tea leaves in social media and the law. On December 28, 2011, I analyzed the first five of my ten predictions. Four out of my first five predictions have been realized and the one prediction that has not yet come to fruition may be realized within the next couple of months. Below were my second five predictions for 2011.

6. Regulated industries such as banking and finance, pharma, etc...will continue refining their approach to regulating social media usage. During the year, FINRA, the Financial Industry Regulation Authority provided more guidance on how brokers may utilize social media in their professional environment.

7. Federal and state governments will determine what official government social media records need to be retained. During the year, federal agencies created best practices for social media record retention.

8. Homeland Security, the CIA, FBI, NSA, U.S. Armed Forces, etc... will need re-evaluate their social media policies and determine what they allow their employees to post online. During the year, Homeland Security stated that it was reviewing its social media policies.

9. Cyberbulling, Privacy, Defamation, and First Amendment issues will become further intertwined and a rational legal framework will need to be created to address these matters. During the year, Connecticut passed a new cyberullying law and New York also discussed updating its bullying laws to account for the Social Media Age.

10. Social Media Credential Fraud will continue to increase as more people will try to create the perception that they are experts in their professional field due to their social media activity. Fraud in the social media space is a huge problem and during the year the National Advertising Division of the Better Business Bureau came out strongly against Like-Gating which may be another name for Social Media Credential Fraud.

For 2011, 9 of my 10 ten predictions came true and the other prediction will eventually come true because the issue is too important not to be resolved within the next year or two.

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

Copyright 2012 by the Law Office of Bradley S. Shear, LLC. All rights reserved.

Cleveland's Social Media Criminal Law May Affect Terry Stop and Frisks

I have previously discussed Cleveland's prior misguided attempts to create ambiguous social media law. Cleveland has finally passed a law that may criminalize social media. This new ordinance (see page 25, sections 1392-11, 1393-11 and 1394-11) that allegedly is aimed at trying to curb flash mobs is very troubling and may create unanticipated problems that were not envisioned by its sponsors.

Will Cleveland police officers during a Terry Stop and Frisk check to see if someone is carrying a digital weapon (personal electronic device) instead of a physical weapon (gun or a knife)? Will this new ordinance change the Stop and Frisk procedures in Cleveland? Was this question even imagined by those who voted in favor of this ordinance?

Fortunately for those who live and/or visit Cleveland, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled a couple years ago that while under Ohio's jurisdiction people have an expectation of privacy regarding the content on their cell phones. Therefore, the potential for abuse of this new ordinance may be less than what it may have been had the Ohio Supreme Court not been so enlightened.

As I previously stated, this law is vague and will only create more problems than it will solve. The tremendous disconnect between social media and government policy continues.

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.