AT&T hit with a class action lawsuit for selling customers’ data

On Tuesday, AT&T, world’s largest telecommunications company was hit with a class action lawsuit by The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and Pierce Bainbridge Beck Price & Hecht LLP for selling clients’ location information to outsiders like credit offices and safeguard underwriters, alongside loot seekers and stalkers, without client consent.

Included in the lawsuit are two data location aggregators, LocationSmart and Zumigo.

According to EFF, an investigation by Motherboard earlier this year revealed that any cellphone user’s precise, real-time location could be bought for just $300

“The location data AT&T offered up for sale is extremely precise and can locate any of its wireless subscribers in real-time, providing a window into the intimate details of their lives: where they go to the doctor, where they worship, where they live, and much more,” said Abbye Klamann Ognibene’s words, a Pierce Bainbridge associate,  in EFF’s press release.

According to EFF Staff Attorney Aaron Mackey, “AT&T and data aggregators have systematically violated the location privacy rights of tens of millions of AT&T customers. Consumers must stand up to protect their privacy and shut down this illegal market. That’s why we filed this lawsuit today.”

The lawsuit alleges AT&T violated the Federal Communications Act and engaged in deceptive practices under California’s unfair competition law, as AT&T deceived customers into believing that the company was protecting their location data. The suit also alleges that AT&T, LocationSmart, and Zumigo have violated California’s constitutional, statutory, and common law rights to privacy.

The EFF is determined to ensure that this mobile network giant does not continue its practice selling this data and is interested in having AT&T destroy all location data that has already been sold

In a swift reaction, AT&T said that it has no business sharing location data with aggregation firms and is ready to fight back against this lawsuit

“The facts don’t support this lawsuit, and we will fight it. Location-based services like roadside assistance, fraud protection, and medical device alerts have clear and even life-saving benefits. We only share location data with customer consent,” a spokesperson for the company. “We stopped sharing location data with aggregators after reports of misuse.”

On LocationSmart website it says, “LocationSmart is a cloud location service that provides “privacy-protected location services from multiple sources including carriers, Wi-Fi, IP addresses, device SDK and landlines…”

Zumigo provides almost the same service with its website stating that the company“ensures user authenticity and prevents fraud by combining mobile identity and location.”