Vague language and lengthy sentences used in these terms of service have caused concerns about customer privacy and raised public awareness in many ways.
[2] A terms of service agreement typically contains sections pertaining to one or more of the following topics: Among 102 companies marketing genetic testing to consumers in 2014 for health purposes, 71 had publicly available terms and conditions:[3] Among 260 mass market consumer software license agreements in 2010:[4] Among the terms and conditions of 31 cloud-computing services in January-July 2010, operating in England:[5] The researchers note that rules on location and time limits may be unenforceable for consumers in many jurisdictions with consumer protections, that acceptable use policies are rarely enforced, that quick deletion is dangerous if a court later rules the termination wrongful, that local laws often require warranties (and UK forced Apple to say so).
On July 1, 1997, AOL posted their revised terms of service to take effect July 31, 1997, without formally notifying its users of the changes made, most notably a new policy which would grant third-party business partners, including a marketing firm, access to its members' telephone numbers.
Several days before the changes were to take effect, an AOL member informed the media of the changes and the following news coverage incited a large influx of internet traffic on the AOL page which enabled users to opt out of having their names and numbers on marketing lists.
Sony claimed that Hotz and others had committed breach of contract by violating the terms of service of the PlayStation Network and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.
[13] On December 17, 2012, Instagram and Facebook announced a change to their terms of use that caused a widespread outcry from its user base.
The controversial clause stated: "you agree that a business or other entity may pay us to display your username, likeness, photos (along with any associated metadata), and/or actions you take, in connection with paid or sponsored content or promotions, without any compensation to you".
A 2012 court case In re Zappos.com, Inc., Customer Data Security Breach Litigation held that Zappos.com's terms of use, with one such clause, was unenforceable.
[17] On October 5, 2023, a 42-year-old woman named Kanokporn Tangsuan (who worked as a doctor at NYU Langone Health) was killed at Raglan Road Irish Pub at Disney Springs in Walt Disney World after going into anaphylactic shock due to increased levels of dairy and nuts in her system.
Her widower, Jeffery Piccolo, filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Disney in February 2024, claiming that she had alerted staff to her severe allergy to both multiple times, but was ignored.