Kutak Rock attorney Turquoise Early recently was published in The Arkansas Lawyer magazine, co-authoring an article titled “Privacy Paradox – From ‘Let Alone’ to ‘Share My Location’” with Amie Schoeppel Wilcox of Eldredge & Clark LLP.  The article contends that though the United States has long protected an individual’s right to privacy, in the present day a paradoxical relationship has developed where individuals wanting both privacy and convenience trade their private information to use modern products, devices and services.

Early and Schoeppel Wilcox analyze how the rapid advance of technology and consumer demand have outpaced the limits of existing privacy law. They cite that when consumers agree to a product or service’s privacy policy without reading or fully understanding its terms and conditions, they often agree to share private information in ways that may not be protected by law. Their article explores the limits of privacy laws and the Federal Trade Commission in protecting individuals’ private information from non-government actors, like companies that use and sell consumer data. They examine the implications posed by recent legal cases and commercial uses of products that pose risks to privacy and cite examples that include health tracking apps, communications recorded by voice-activated devices and AI assistants, location tracking by mobile devices, and doorbell and home security camera companies that have attempted to include the ability for third parties to access homeowners’ cameras.

Click here to view a PDF of the article (shared with permission) and click here to view the digital issue of the magazine.

Turquoise is an associate in the firm’s Omaha office and a member of the Privacy and Data Security group. A Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP/US) credentialed through the International Association of Privacy Professionals, she advises clients on complex data privacy and cybersecurity matters, offering practical, business-minded guidance in an evolving regulatory landscape. Her practice encompasses data breach response, cybersecurity, and compliance with domestic and international privacy laws, with particular depth in U.S. federal and state privacy statutes such as the GLBA, HIPAA and CCPA, as well as the EU’s GDPR.