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Good evening everyone. Welcome to another edition of KP Social Discussions. Today we are going to have atête-à-tête (of sorts) on something that is now one of the most talked-about terms since good old Miss Rona reared her ugly head up and cancelled everything fun.
We are jumping into the world of everything virtual!
2020 AND THE RISE OF EVERYTHING VIRTUAL
It is now fairly common knowledge that the outbreak of COVID-19 has forced a compulsory shift in the manner with which countries and individuals operate and the year 2020 will be remembered as the year that the world fully went virtual.
It is now fairly common knowledge that the outbreak of COVID-19 has forced a compulsory shift in the manner with which countries and individuals operate and the year 2020 will be remembered as the year that the world fully went virtual.
As coronavirus is easily transmittable businesses, religious places and schools have turned to virtual technology as an alternative to physical events and meetings with many projecting that this may represent the new normal.
Therefore, amidst the new challenge of the pandemic, virtual technology platforms are the biggest winners, with companies and business relying heavily on their services to maintain operations.
In recent weeks, teleconferencing application, Zoom, for example, has emerged as the most downloaded app on the Apple App Store, repeatedly breaking its download records.
App tracking firm Apptopia has stated that on March 23, 2020, Zoom was downloaded 2.13 million times worldwide that day!
This has of course translated into a meteoric rise in Zoom's stock and now its market cap is pegged at around USD 40 billion, larger than the market caps of the top 6 American airlines combined
Two months before, Zoom had averaged under 56,000 global downloads in a day. This success story has resulted that other platforms such as Google and Facebook seeking to share in the spoils by launching their own virtual platforms.
Globally the arms of governance have also adopted virtual communication. In England, parliamentary sittings are held virtually and in Scotland, the highest court launched virtual court for appeals.
Also in Nigeria and Kenya, the judiciary have placed procedures to the effect that pending judgments, rulings and in urgent trials would be through teleconferencing.
Nigeria has also issued guidelines to serve as the basis for the successful integration of virtual platforms.
Nigeria has also issued guidelines to serve as the basis for the successful integration of virtual platforms.
These include the CAC Guidelines on holding of Company Annual General Meeting and the NSE Guidelines on Companies for Virtual Board, Committee and Management Meetings
However, the virtual world, which currently serves as a valuable aid, also must be used carefully in order to avoid several risks and possible legal issues that may arise from the use of such platforms
For the purposes of this discussion, we will limit our scope to teleconferencing, virtual reality and virtual gambling. Mention will also be made of Virtual court sittings and virtual Board Meetings
Data Privacy and Security Issues: data use requires a need to safeguard against the misuse of it. There have been reports of Zoom being hacked and users experiencing loss or misuse of data. The company is also accused of hiding software system flaws that expose it to hackers
The hacking is often referred to as “Zoombombing”, where uninvited trolls gain access to a video conference to harass the other participants. Unpermitted recordings of meetings have also shown up on public internet servers
This has resulted in litigation. In a cased filed in California Northern District Court, a user claimed damages for personal injury occasioned by Zoom’s privacy breach. Similarly, a suit filed in Oakland, had a user claiming the sum of $5,000,000 for breach of contract.
Zoom Chief Executive Officer Eric Yuan admitted and tendered an apology for the lapses which he acknowledged in a blog post stating that the company had fallen short of expectations over privacy and security
Data breaches have always been a big trust issue, for instance, teleconference app, Houseparty famously fell out of favour with users when rumours of a data breach started to abound. Data breaches are now also a good issue to litigate on.
If you have been following our discussions, you would remember we discussed Data Privacy and the obligations of companies under the Data protection legal framework, well today that knowledge will definitely come in handy
The question of the appropriate legal steps to take in event of a breach of privacy is a fair question especially in situations where the Client is based in Nigeria and the service provider is a Silicon Valley-based company in San Francisco.
Generally, disputes would go to the jurisdiction stated in the contract for American companies would usually be America. However, it is interesting to note that one may have the option to seek legal remedies under The Nigerian Data Protection Regulation 2019
After all, the Regulation applies to federal, state and local government agencies and institutions as well as "private sector organisations that own, use or deploy information systems within the Federal Republic of Nigeria" (Ding ding ding),...
obtain and process personal of Nigeria residents and citizens within and outside Nigeria. Furthermore, the regulation imposes obligations on organisations (data controllers or processors).
Finally, Regulation stipulates that the use of the personal data of the data subject must be disclosed and the data subject had given his consent. Thus one does have the jurisdiction to sue foreign entities for data breaches that occur in Nigeria.
At this point, it is thus trite to state that data privacy and security should perhaps be given the most consideration. Firms and Businesses run on customer or consumer data; privacy and security must be guaranteed
Some minor steps to prevent data breaches in a virtual application include:
a.Organisers ensuring that all participants are accounted for
b.Use of passwords asides from the default links to join meetings
c.Ensure the privacy and security policies of hosts are updated
a.Organisers ensuring that all participants are accounted for
b.Use of passwords asides from the default links to join meetings
c.Ensure the privacy and security policies of hosts are updated
d.Enable a Two-Factor verification system on significant applications used by participants
e.Require those who use a public Wi-Fi to join to use a Virtual Private Network (VPN)
e.Require those who use a public Wi-Fi to join to use a Virtual Private Network (VPN)
f.For businesses and companies, activate a security system using encryption, passwords, network firewalls, and restrict the use of personal devices in accessing firm or company data/information
Recording of Meetings: it is advised that explicit and direct consent be sought and granted before the meeting is recorded. This ensures the safety of sensitive matters that may be discussed in such meetings.
In the suit filed against Zoom: Buxbaum et al v. Zoom Video Communications Inc. were the users alleged that although Zoom claims to not record meetings or retain recordings of meetings, it, however, failed to install an end to end encryption system that protects users from...
unauthorised access to videos or call conferences made on the platform.
For Users of Virtual augmented reality, there are several other pressing legal issues apart from the obvious issue of data privacy
The first of such is Intellectual Property Rights- one of the major causes of concern for owners of such IP rights is the use of IP and branding in VR.
For instance, players in games can visit a number of public places and use merchandise which could violate existing trademarks and the copyright of various real and existing brands.
In fact, some VR systems allow users to virtually import photographs, music, brand names and otherwise IP protected material into their virtual experiences without obtaining necessary permissions from the owner of such intellectual property.
Furthermore, there are several jurisdictional problems while enforcing claims, against such VR users, since VR users log in from several countries whose IP laws may differ widely from one to another.
There is also the issue of who to sue, the user or the Creator of the VR system that permits and tolerates infringement.
The extent of potential intellectual property infringement is remarkable since VR creators can create a whole virtual world comprising of images, virtual property and other contents through the VR system.
On account of deeply personal nature of VR experiences and the creation of identity in the alternate world, there might be a need in future for Nigerian and Global IP laws to rebalance the assignment of the separate VR platforms or users’ IP rights.
For example, while incorporating photographs, music, names of the brand or their logos, traditional IP laws stipulate obtaining permission from the owner regarding applicable rights.
It would be also important to note if merely using the branded items in the virtual world would classify as using them for commercial purposes or whether they fall under the doctrine of fair use
Solutions?
VR is an emerging field of technology which makes any legislative attempt to regulate it wary to several errors. Further, it must be kept in mind that any legislation that is vigorously protective in nature could also stifle with the evolution of technology.
VR is an emerging field of technology which makes any legislative attempt to regulate it wary to several errors. Further, it must be kept in mind that any legislation that is vigorously protective in nature could also stifle with the evolution of technology.
In such a circumstance, self-regulation by VR companies themselves by adhering to ethical and legally sound policies may be the best available solution.
CONCLUSION
There are numerous factors to consider in this new age of virtual meetings and remote working, some of which have been discussed today. Technology plays a significant role in global development, and due to coronavirus, it has once again proven to be important.
There are numerous factors to consider in this new age of virtual meetings and remote working, some of which have been discussed today. Technology plays a significant role in global development, and due to coronavirus, it has once again proven to be important.
Some of the important safety measures have been outlined and strict adherence to them may aid prevent or contain a possible data breach or privacy/security breach which may have widespread liabilities for parties involved.
Stay safe and blessed as we continue to adapt to new realities. Thank you and good night!
@threadreaderapp unroll please
We have included a link to our paper on Data Protection for those who need a refresher on that discussion
kennapartners.com/the-obligation…
We hope you enjoy it half as much as we enjoyed writing it.
kennapartners.com/the-obligation…
We hope you enjoy it half as much as we enjoyed writing it.
