A plethora of federal laws address the proliferation of technology-enabled automated communications in a variety of areas, including finance, commerce, credit, and health. Although the general objective is to address individual privacy and data security concerns, each law contains distinct goals, technical requirements, and remedies if violated. One issue that continues to evolve is whether an individual has standing to pursue private recovery under the distinct provisions of each law.

As I explained in my April column, “Supreme Court’s Google Ruling Has Big Implications for Suits Against Tech Companies,” NYLJ, April 15, 2019, in late March, in Frank v. Gaos, 139 S. Ct. 1041, 203 L. Ed. 2d 404 (2019), the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that plaintiffs suing for alleged violations of the federal Stored Communications Act (SCA) had to demonstrate “actual and concrete harm” that was not, in that case, established by a mere violation of that statute. The court in Gaos relied in large measure on its earlier decision in Spokeo v. Robins, 578 U. S. ___, 136 S. Ct. 1540, 194 L. Ed. 2d 635 (2016), which involved a claim brought under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act of 1970 in which the court concluded, “Article III standing requires a concrete injury even in the context of a statutory violation.” Thus, Spokeo and Gaos seem likely to limit the ability of consumers to sue Internet companies and other technology businesses for solely technical violations of the statutes at issue, because individual plaintiffs might be unable to demonstrate actual and quantifiable harm as a result of only these alleged violations for purposes of standing.

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