Penalty Amount
$566,200
PulsePoint circumvented Safari browser privacy settings to place unauthorized cookies, enabling targeted advertising without user consent. The New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs secured a $1 million settlement, including a $566,200 civil penalty, and mandated privacy reforms such as third-party assessments and website disclosures.
PulsePoint must pay $566,200 in civil penalties, $33,800 for State costs, $150,000 for privacy programs, and provide $250,000 in in-kind advertising. It must implement privacy controls, undergo annual third-party privacy assessments for five years, disclose data collection practices on its website, and maintain systems to expire pre-settlement cookies.
In-house legal teams should review all vendor and customer agreements where PulsePoint (or similar ad tech entities) is a data processor or recipient, particularly those involving digital advertising, analytics, or data sharing. Focus on clauses governing data collection methods, consent requirements (especially for cookies and tracking), compliance with browser privacy signals (e.g., Do Not Track), and data security obligations. Given the settlement's mandate for third-party privacy assessments and enhanced website disclosures, contracts may need amendments to include audit rights, specific technical compliance warranties, and obligations to provide clear, accessible consumer control mechanisms (opt-out/restriction instructions). Data processing agreements (DPAs) should be updated to reflect these enhanced standards and ensure flow-down requirements to sub-processors.
Entity
PulsePoint
Industry
AdvertisingOfficial Press Release
https://www.njoag.gov/new-jersey-division-of-consumer-affairs-obtains-million-dollar-settlement-with-online-advertising-company-accused-of-overriding-consumers-privacy-settings-without-consent/
New Jersey Attorney General Enforcement Page
https://www.njoag.gov/about/divisions-and-offices/division-of-consumer-affairs/
"PulsePoint, based in New York City"
"$566,200 civil penalty"
"New Jersey’s Consumer Fraud Act"
"placed unauthorized “cookies” – small packages of data – on Apple, Inc.’s Safari web browsers, even though the users’ privacy settings were set to specifically block cookies from third-party advertisers."
A multistate coalition co-led by New Jersey won a federal court order rejecting the Trump Administration’s decision not to request funding for the CFPB. The order struck down that decision and directed the Administration to follow the law and fund the agency; no monetary penalty or privacy violation is described.
New Jersey’s Attorney General and Division of Consumer Affairs alerted the public that three synthetic kratom-related compounds became illegal to possess or sell in the state under a temporary federal scheduling order. The release describes a controlled-substance alert, not a privacy enforcement action, and identifies no company, privacy violation, or monetary penalty.
$2.3M
Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings agreed to pay $2,287,455 to participating states and strengthen its security and vendor-management practices following an investigation into the 2019 breach at its debt-collection vendor, AMCA. The breach potentially exposed information of more than 27.5 million people nationwide, including sensitive information belonging to approximately 10.2 million LabCorp patients.
$694.0M
New Jersey's Attorney General and Division of Consumer Affairs, along with 41 Attorneys General, reached a $694 million settlement with subprime auto lender Credit Acceptance Corporation over allegations it originated unaffordable loans its own systems predicted borrowers could not repay, employed aggressive debt-collection tactics, and failed to prevent deceptive vehicle-service contract and GAP product 'packing' by dealers. The multistate settlement stepped in after the CFPB permanently dropped its 2023 enforcement action against CAC in 2025. CAC will provide $60 million in cash restitution, $634 million in debt relief, an additional $15 million to the states, and implement injunctive lending reforms including loan off ramps, pre-loan disclosures, add-on packing safeguards, and a seven-year vehicle price cap. Note: this is a consumer-protection lending enforcement action, not a privacy matter; violation categories are best-fit mappings from the available taxonomy.
$650K
The New Jersey Attorney General and Division of Consumer Affairs announced that Match Group, Inc. will pay $650,000 and change its business practices to settle allegations that it misrepresented or failed to disclose its criminal background screening policies and practices to New Jersey users, violating the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act and the Internet Dating Safety Act. Under a Consent Order, Match must accurately represent its screening policies, notify existing New Jersey members of updated disclosures within 150 days, and post clear and conspicuous disclosures and safety notifications about the limitations of criminal background screenings.
$96.5M
New Jersey and a coalition of states and territories obtained preliminary approval for a plan to distribute funds from settlements with generic drug manufacturers accused of conspiring to raise drug prices. The settlements total approximately $96.5 million, and eligible consumers may submit claims for compensation.