Penalty Amount
$175,000
The California Attorney General settled with Houzz Inc. for secretly recording incoming and outgoing telephone calls from March to September 2013 without notifying or obtaining consent from all parties, violating state wiretapping and eavesdropping laws. The settlement requires Houzz to pay $175,000, appoint a Chief Privacy Officer, conduct a privacy risk assessment, secure and destroy the recordings, and implement compliance measures.
Houzz must pay a $175,000 penalty, appoint a Chief Privacy Officer to oversee compliance, conduct a comprehensive privacy risk assessment, securely destroy all illegally recorded calls, and implement policies to ensure future compliance with California's privacy laws.
In-house legal teams should review all vendor, customer, and service agreements where telephone communications may occur, particularly those involving customer support, sales calls, or remote services. Specific clauses to audit include any provisions on call recording, data collection, consent mechanisms, privacy compliance, and data retention/destruction. Changes may be needed to mandate explicit, documented consent from all parties before recording calls, implement secure storage and scheduled destruction protocols for any retained recordings, and add obligations to conduct periodic privacy risk assessments. Agreements should also be updated to reflect the requirement to appoint a designated privacy officer responsible for compliance.
Entity
Houzz Inc.
Also known as: Houzz
Industry
TechnologyOfficial Press Release
2015 10 02 Complaint
https://oag.ca.gov/system/files/attachments/press_releases/2015%2010-02%20-%20Complaint.pdf
2015 10 02 Final Judgment and Permanent Injunction
https://oag.ca.gov/system/files/attachments/press_releases/2015%2010-02%20-%20Final%20Judgment%20and%20Permanent%20Injunction.pdf
California Attorney General Enforcement Page
https://oag.ca.gov/privacy/privacy-enforcement-actions
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