Bipartisan Coalition of Attorneys General Expresses Concern about Contact Tracing Apps Privacy Implications in Letters Sent to Apple and Google

Lincoln – In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Attorney General Peterson and a bipartisan coalition of 39 attorneys general asked Google and Apple to ensure all contact tracing and exposure notification apps related to COVID-19 adequately protect consumers’ personal information. Specifically, the coalition asked Google and Apple to guarantee that such apps, when available to consumers, are affiliated with a public health authority and removed from Google Play and the App Store once no longer needed by public health authorities.

In a letter sent today to the Chief Executive Officers of Apple and Google, cosponsored by Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum and Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson, the Attorneys General acknowledge that while digital contact tracing and exposure notification tools are valuable in understanding the spread of COVID-19 and assisting public health authorities, these same technologies pose a risk to consumers’ privacy.

“Public health authorities across the country and throughout Nebraska are working diligently to understand the spread of COVID-19,” Attorney General Peterson said. “Contract tracing and exposure notification apps that collect sensitive information from consumers without meaningfully contributing to this understanding deserve no place in the App Store or on Google Play.”

The coalition expressed concern regarding contact tracing and exposure notification apps available to consumers in Google Play and the App Store, particularly the “free” apps that utilize GPS tracking, offer in-app purchases, and are not affiliated with any public health authority or legitimate research institution.

To protect consumers without interfering with public health efforts to monitor and address the spread of COVID-19, the letters ask Google and Apple to:

1. Verify that every app labeled or marketed as related to contact tracing, COVID-19 contact tracing, or coronavirus contact tracing or exposure notification is affiliated with a municipal, county, state or federal public health authority, or a hospital or university in the U.S. that is working with such public health authorities;
2. Remove any app that cannot be verified as affiliated with one of the entities identified above; and
3. Pledge to remove all COVID-19 / coronavirus related exposure notification and contact tracing apps, including those that utilize the new exposure notification application program interfaces (APIs) developed by Google and Apple, from Google Play and the App Store once the COVID-19 national emergency ends. In addition, the attorneys general asked Google and Apple to provide written confirmation to their offices once the apps have been removed or an explanation why removal of a particular app or apps would impair the public health authorities affiliated with each app.

Click here for a copy of the letter.

Lincoln – Attorney General Doug Peterson joined a coalition of 51 attorneys general led by Connecticut filing the third lawsuit stemming from the ongoing antitrust investigation into a widespread conspiracy by generic drug manufacturers to artificially inflate and manipulate prices, reduce competition, and unreasonably restrain trade for generic drugs sold across the United States.

Attorney General Doug Peterson is advising consumers that the U.S. Department of Treasury has adjusted certain features of its Economic Impact Payment debit cards in response to feedback from consumers.

Lincoln, NE— Attorney General Peterson has joined 38 attorneys general in urging Congress to help ensure that all Americans have the home internet connectivity necessary to participate in telemedicine, teleschooling, and telework as part of any additional legislation that provides relief and recovery resources related to addressing the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Attorney General Peterson Joins Coalition of Attorneys General Urging Congress to Pass Safeguarding America’s First Responders Act

Lincoln, NE—Attorney General Peterson is joining a bipartisan coalition of state attorneys general urging Congress to pass S.3607, the Safeguarding America’s First Responders Act. The Act would permit the families of first responders, who die or are permanently and totally disabled as a result of COVID-19, to receive the same federal benefits extended to first responders, or their survivors, otherwise killed or injured in the line of duty. Current federal law only allows survivors access to certain benefits if evidence is provided, proving the deceased or permanently disabled first responder contracted COVID-19 while on duty.

In a letter sent to Congress today, Attorney General Peterson and 51 other state attorneys general urged quick passage of the SAFR Act. The letter states, in part, “When public safety officers are called to respond, they do not know whether they are coming into contact with a person who is positive for COVID-19. We have seen harrowing stories about how public safety officers have taken heroic actions to save the lives of others, knowing that they risked infection in doing so.”

To read the entire letter, click here.

The SAFR Act would establish a temporary presumption that officers contracted COVID-19 while on duty if diagnosed within 45 days of a first responder’s last shift. The legislation ensures families of officers and first responders lost while fighting the pandemic do not face unnecessary barriers to benefits already promised under existing federal law.

This legislation is sponsored by Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa and Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey. It recently passed the United States Senate and is currently being considered by the House of Representatives.

ATTORNEY GENERAL PETERSON ANNOUNCES OVER $2.7 MILLION SETTLEMENT WITH NATION’S LARGEST SUBPRIME AUTO FINANCING COMPANY

Settlement with Santander Includes more than $2.6 Million in Relief for Consumers

Lincoln, NE – Today Attorney General Doug Peterson, along with a coalition of 34 attorneys general, announced a settlement with Santander Consumer USA, Inc. (Santander) that includes the potential for more than $2.67 million in relief for Nebraska consumers. The settlement resolves allegations that Santander violated consumer protection laws through deceptive loan origination and servicing practices, failing to monitor its dealers, and knowingly taking advantage of consumers with subprime credit. Under the settlement, Santander is required to make significant changes to its dealer oversight and loan underwriting practices.

Santander will pay $65 million in restitution for certain consumers residing in the 34 participating jurisdictions who defaulted on their loans between January 1, 2010 and December 31, 2019. This includes approximately 1,044 consumers in Nebraska who can expect to receive just under $235,000 total in restitution.

The settlement also includes significant consumer relief by way of loan forgiveness and loan deficiency waivers. For consumers with the lowest quality loans who defaulted prior to December 31, 2019, and have not had their cars repossessed, Santander must allow those consumers to keep their cars and waive any outstanding balance on the loans. Additionally, at least 117 consumers in Nebraska will receive immediate deficiency waivers on their loans totaling over $1.27 million; and an additional 145 Nebraska consumers may be eligible for $1.17 million in waivers if Santander can successfully buy back their loans. Consumers may visit the following website to find updated information on the settlement: www.santandermultistateagsettlement.com.

Santander will also pay an additional $5 million to the settling states. Nebraska will receive $30,000 of that amount.

Joining Attorney General Peterson in this settlement are the attorneys general of Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wyoming.

Attorney General Doug Peterson and the Attorneys General from ten other Midwestern states are urging the Department of Justice to pursue a federal investigation into suspected national price fixing by meat packers in the cattle industry.

LINCOLN – Attorney General Peterson recently joined a bipartisan coalition of 52 attorneys general in calling on USTelecom – the leading organization representing telecommunications providers – to continue its collaboration with state attorneys general by bolstering technological capabilities to improve enforcement against illegal robocallers.

LINCOLN – In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Attorney General Doug Peterson and a bipartisan coalition of 34 attorneys general recommended actions to help homeowners in letters sent today to the Federal Housing Finance Administration (FHFA) and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

LINCOLN - Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson today announced that his office is sending warning letters to healthcare providers and other businesses