[E-trademarks] Notice of Data Security Incident

Mon May 13 11:23:35 EDT 2024

You’re not missing anything.  The PTO is behaving like a rogue agency that doesn’t need to follow its own rules (or the APA, for that matter), because the courts have been unwilling to hold it accountable in that regard.

Kevin Grierson
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From: E-trademarks <e-trademarks-bounces at oppedahl-lists.com> On Behalf Of Tim Ackermann via E-trademarks
Sent: Monday, May 13, 2024 10:52 AM
To: Carl Oppedahl <e-trademarks at oppedahl-lists.com>
Cc: Tim Ackermann <tim at ackermannlaw.com>
Subject: Re: [E-trademarks] Notice of Data Security Incident

EXTERNAL EMAIL
And... it gets worse.
 At the same time the USPTO notified me, it also notified (at least) one of my clients. This was a client whose required chosen email address is one that goes to them.
I, of course, have no idea my client got this information (until asked about it).
 This is a pending application. Why would a client have received any communication from the USPTO on this? I am counsel of record; I filed the application and thus am 'recognized' under R. 2.17(b). I am the only correspondent. The USPTO should not have contacted the client directly, because the USPTO is required by Rule 2.18 to "only" correspond with that attorney except under circumstances that do not apply (e.g. recognition is improper or has ended).
 Or am I missing something here?
 Sincerely,
Tim Ackermann
The Ackermann Law Firm

E:  tim at ackermannlaw.com<mailto:tim at ackermannlaw.com>
P:  817.305.0690
F:  214.453.0810
W: ackermannlaw.com<http://ackermannlaw.com/>
O: 1701 W. Northwest Hwy. Ste. 100
     Grapevine TX 76051

On Tue, May 7, 2024 at 1:30 PM Tim Ackermann <tim at ackermannlaw.com<mailto:tim at ackermannlaw.com>> wrote:
FYI - the Office disclosed domicile information (again, I think). Then it says this:
You are receiving this notice because your email address is listed as the contact for the trademark owner in at least one of these applications. There is no action you need to take with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), but in the interest of full transparency, we are bringing this matter to your attention.
 "Full transparency" evidently does not include telling me WHOSE domicile information the Office failed to protect.
Tim
Tim Ackermann
The Ackermann Law Firm

E:  tim at ackermannlaw.com<mailto:tim at ackermannlaw.com>
P:  817.305.0690
F:  214.453.0810
W: ackermannlaw.com<http://ackermannlaw.com/>
O: 1701 W. Northwest Hwy. Ste. 100
     Grapevine TX 76051

---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office <subscriptioncenter at subscriptions.uspto.gov<mailto:subscriptioncenter at subscriptions.uspto.gov>>
Date: Tue, May 7, 2024 at 1:16 PM
Subject: Notice of Data Security Incident
To:

Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page<https://lnks.gd/l/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJidWxsZXRpbl9saW5rX2lkIjoxMDAsInVyaSI6ImJwMjpjbGljayIsInVybCI6Imh0dHBzOi8vY29udGVudC5nb3ZkZWxpdmVyeS5jb20vYWNjb3VudHMvVVNQVE8vYnVsbGV0aW5zLzM5YjAxZDUiLCJidWxsZXRpbl9pZCI6IjIwMjQwNTA3Ljk0NDQ0NTQxIn0.lPX5Tcez0j8ETMY8H5biSOPbRU22zmq98an3_yHu_zQ/s/3003983680/br/242027980700-l>.
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USPTO Alert
[US Patent and Trademark Office]
Notice of Data Security Incident

Dear valued customer,

We recently identified a data security incident that impacted domicile information in certain trademark application data made available between August 23, 2023, and April 19, 2024. You are receiving this notice because your email address is listed as the contact for the trademark owner in at least one of these applications.

There is no action you need to take with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), but in the interest of full transparency, we are bringing this matter to your attention.

What happened and what information was involved?

U.S. trademark law requires applicants to include their domicile addresses in trademark applications. This helps us determine if applicants are required to hire a U.S.-licensed attorney to represent them before our agency (called the U.S. counsel rule<https://lnks.gd/l/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJidWxsZXRpbl9saW5rX2lkIjoxMDEsInVyaSI6ImJwMjpjbGljayIsInVybCI6Imh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnVzcHRvLmdvdi90cmFkZW1hcmtzL2xhd3MvdHJhZGVtYXJrLXJ1bGUtcmVxdWlyZXMtZm9yZWlnbi1hcHBsaWNhbnRzLWFuZC1yZWdpc3RyYW50cy1oYXZlLXVzP3V0bV9jYW1wYWlnbj1zdWJzY3JpcHRpb25jZW50ZXImdXRtX2NvbnRlbnQ9JnV0bV9tZWRpdW09ZW1haWwmdXRtX25hbWU9JnV0bV9zb3VyY2U9Z292ZGVsaXZlcnkmdXRtX3Rlcm09IiwiYnVsbGV0aW5faWQiOiIyMDI0MDUwNy45NDQ0NDU0MSJ9.58SI_D6d9vFd-QBeOLn3g5kVWrR0AzgNl590e31YpOU/s/3003983680/br/242027980700-l>). The U.S. counsel rule is an important tool in combatting fraudulent trademark filing activity.

On April 19, 2024, we discovered there were domicile addresses that should have been hidden from public view but which were inadvertently exposed as we transitioned to a new IT system. These addresses appeared in records that could have been retrieved through a bulk data set on our website. This data set is typically used in academic and economic research.

At no point were the impacted domicile addresses visible when users searched trademark records through our search system or our trademark documents database.

Importantly, this incident was not the result of malicious activity, and we have no reason to believe that your domicile information has been misused. Nevertheless, we take all data security concerns seriously, and we’ve implemented corrective measures.

How we addressed the issue

When we discovered the issue, we blocked access to the impacted bulk data set, removed files, implemented a patch to fix the exposure, tested our solution, and re-enabled access.

Moving forward

We’re committed to data security and are taking steps to prevent incidents like this from happening in the future. We sincerely regret this error and are updating our process for creating and publishing bulk data files. Additional testing, spot checks, and process improvements will help us ensure domicile addresses in the bulk data are properly masked going forward.

For more information

We will not send additional notices or communications regarding this incident. If you’re contacted about the incident by anyone you believe is impersonating the USPTO, or if you have any questions or concerns, please contact TMdomicile at uspto.gov<mailto:TMdomicile at uspto.gov>.

Sincerely,
[Jamie Holcombe pen signature]

Henry “Jamie” Holcombe
Chief Information Officer
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

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