Class Action Against Blue Cross Blue Shield Filed in Michigan

Source Domain: natlawreview.com

A putative class action against Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan (BCBSM) has been filed in the Eastern District of Michigan alleging that commonplace website tracking and session replay tools violate both federal and Michigan wiretap and eavesdropping laws. The case, Falls v. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan Mutual Insurance Company, joins nearly 4,000 others that have been filed across the U.S. since 2022 alleging some form of wiretapping based on website interactions.

What Happened?

In Falls, plaintiffs allege that BCBSM deployed third‑party tracking pixels on its public‑facing websites that collected and transmitted visitors’ personally identifiable information to outside technology vendors without adequate notice or consent. According to the complaint, the challenged tracking technologies allegedly captured information tied to users’ interactions with BCBSM’s website and shared that data with third parties for analytics and advertising purposes.

The case underscores that even heavily regulated entities in the healthcare sector are facing litigation involving allegations directed at standard website analytics tools, independent of any alleged data breach or cybersecurity incident. The claims are purportedly brought under the Federal Wiretap Act (18 U.S.C § 2510 et seq.) and the Michigan Eavesdropping Statute (MCL 750.539a et seq.).

Two Cases – A Trend?

This lawsuit joins Goodman v. Hillsdale College, a recently settled class action lawsuit brought in the Western District of Michigan. In the case, the Court denied Hillsdale College’s motion to dismiss a putative class action alleging violations of the Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA) based on the college’s use of website tracking technology on its online lecture platform. The Hillsdale decision rejected the notion that nonprofits or mission‑driven organizations are exempt from privacy statutes like the VPPA. The court made clear that free content, educational purpose, and nonprofit…

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