EPIC Commends FTC for Including Data Minimization & Data Rights in Chegg Settlement

In comments to the Federal Trade Commission, EPIC commended the FTC for incorporating access and deletion rights and data minimization requirements into its settlement with edtech company Chegg. Chegg, which markets subscription-based study aids and a scholarship search service, collects and stores personal information from millions of users. Although Chegg represented to consumers that it was keeping their personal information safe, Chegg’s data security practices were inadequate, resulting in multiple infiltrations by hackers. EPIC commended the FTC for taking enforcement action against companies like Chegg and using its unfairness authority as a check on harmful privacy and data security practices. EPIC also praised the terms of the FTC’s consent order, noting that “Access and deletion rights work in tandem with data minimization safeguards to enhance consumer privacy and data security.”

EPIC regularly files comments in response to proposed FTC consent orders and complaints regarding business practices that violate privacy rights. Most recently, EPIC filed comments in response to the FTC’s rulemaking on commercial surveillance calling for across-the-board data minimization requirements and data rights.