Online Shopping Legal Investigations: Sign Up and Take Action
Last Updated on May 8, 2024
At A Glance
- This Alert Affects:
- Online shoppers across the U.S.
- What’s Going On?
- Attorneys working with ClassAction.org are pursuing legal action against certain online retailers over potential violations of various state and federal laws. Scroll down to find the full list of investigations and sign up if you are affected.
- What Am I Signing Up For, Exactly?
- You’re signing up for what’s known as “mass arbitration,” which involves hundreds or thousands of consumers bringing individual arbitration claims against the same company at the same time and over the same issue. This is different from class action litigation and takes place outside of court.
- Does This Cost Anything?
- It costs nothing to sign up, and the attorneys will only get paid if they win your claim.
Click the button below for the matter that applies to you.
You’ll be taken to a secure form where you can sign up and join others taking action.
Attorneys working with ClassAction.org are pursuing various mass arbitrations that involve online shopping. This is a relatively new type of legal action that, unlike class action lawsuits, requires affected consumers to sign up to take action.
Below, you’ll find a summary of each investigation, including which stores or websites are involved, who could be affected, and which laws may be getting violated. Each summary will also include a link to a secure form where affected consumers can sign up to join others taking action. It doesn’t cost anything to sign up.
Is Gap Sharing Shoppers’ Data with PayPal?
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Whether you’re buying new jeans for your kids or browsing the linen shop, Gap.com could be sharing your online activities with PayPal.
Attorneys believe the clothing and accessories retailer may be using PayPal’s tracking software on Gap.com to collect data about shoppers—including which products they view and purchase—and sharing the information with the online payment company. They believe this behind-the-scenes data sharing may be happening even when shoppers don’t use PayPal to check out.
While a person’s online shopping habits may not seem like sensitive personal information, PayPal could potentially use the data to learn about their interests and preferences and send them marketing emails—and the attorneys suspect that Gap could be running afoul of various privacy laws by sharing the information without consumers’ permission.
Did you make a purchase on Gap.com during the past two years? Do you also have a PayPal account? Join others taking action by filling out the form linked to below.
Gap.com Customers Sign Up Here Overstock.com Privacy Violations?
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Overstock.com customers: while you were browsing gym equipment, bathroom fixtures, baby furniture and more, your virtual shopping trip may have been tracked and shared with PayPal.
Attorneys believe Overstock.com may be using PayPal’s online tracking tool to collect and share users’ information with the online payment company—regardless of whether they use PayPal to check out. It’s possible that the software could be tracking users’ search terms and any items they view and purchase on Overstock.com. So, whether someone bought a ceramic pot for a new houseplant or something as personal as an engagement ring, PayPal could potentially use that data to send them marketing emails based on their online activity.
The attorneys believe Overstock.com’s suspected data sharing practices may violate state and federal privacy laws, and they’re now gathering customers to take action via mass arbitration.
If you made a purchase on Overstock.com during the past two years and had a PayPal account the time, join others taking action by filling out the form linked to below.
Overstock.com Users Sign Up Here
Is This a Lawsuit? What Am I Signing Up For, Exactly?
You are not signing up for a lawsuit, but rather a process known as mass arbitration. This is a relatively new legal technique that, like a class action lawsuit, allows a large group of people to take action and seek compensation from a company over an alleged wrongdoing. Here is a quick explanation of mass arbitration from our blog:
[M]ass arbitration occurs when hundreds or thousands of consumers file individual arbitration claims against the same company over the same issue at the same time. The aim of a mass arbitration proceeding is to grant relief on a large scale (similar to a class action lawsuit) for those who sign up.”
Some companies’ terms and conditions may contain a class action waiver and/or an arbitration clause requiring consumers to resolve disputes via arbitration, a form of alternative dispute resolution that takes place outside of court before a neutral arbitrator, as opposed to a judge or jury. It’s for this reason that attorneys working with ClassAction.org have decided to handle these matters as mass arbitrations rather than class action lawsuits.
How Much Does This Cost?
It costs nothing to sign up, and you’ll only need to pay if the attorneys win money on your behalf. Their payment will come as a percentage of your award.
If they don’t win your claim, you don’t pay.
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