The Law And Business Of Social Media - Status Updates, September 11th, 2014

In-tweet purchases. Twitter is testing the ability for its users to make purchases directly from tweets. The popular social network is working with a number of sellers, nonprofits and artistsas well as a small handful of social shopping and e-commerce platformsto test "in-tweet purchases," which will enable users to hit the "Buy" button straight from a tweet and compete a purchase in a few taps. This new functionality is only available to a small percentage of Twitter users for now, but availability is expected to broaden over time. What's the password? Back in 2012, we reported on then-new section 980 of the California Labor Code, which restricts employer access to "personal social media" (including usernames and passwords) of employees and applicants for employment. SFGate reports that, regardless of section 980, many state law enforcement agencies still require the disclosure of social media passwords, taking the position that the law only applies to private employers. Some California lawmakers are trying to...