Summary

  • Major US carriers have been fined by the FCC for unauthorized sale of customer location data.
  • Carriers allegedly used “downstream recipients” to avoid obtaining customer consent.
  • AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon were hit with nearly $200 million in total fines.



When users share their data with service providers, one significant concern is that firms might sell the data to third-party companies. This data is mostly used for advertising purposes and showing personalized recommendations to users. Among other things, location data is much more sensitive, as it can reveal users’ exact whereabouts and pose a risk to their privacy. Four major US carriers have been charged with sharing their customers’ location data without their consent. These companies have now been hit with hefty fines from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).


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According to a press release from the FCC (PDF warning), AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon have been slapped with fines by the FCC that total nearly $200 million (via The Verge). The reason? Allegedly selling their customers’ location information to “aggregators” who then resold this data to third-party location-based service providers.


FCC fines major US carriers for unauthorized sharing of location data

The FCC has also pointed out that these major US carriers relied on “downstream recipients” to offload their responsibility for obtaining customers’ consent. In simpler terms, no valid consent was obtained from customers. The agency argues that carriers continued selling location data even after realizing that their safety measures were ineffective.



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It remains to be seen how much these carriers made from selling their customers’ location data. Meanwhile, their total fines amount to almost $200 million, with T-Mobile sitting at the top of the list with $80 million. Sprint faces a $12 million fine, while Verizon should pay $47 million in fines. Finally, AT&T’s fine is $57 million.

The investigations into US carriers selling location data were sparked in 2019 following a report from tech journalist Joseph Cox on Vice. Back in 2020, we heard rumblings that the FCC wanted to charge the carriers and impose a hefty fine on them. Meanwhile, according to The Wall Street Journal, the move was postponed to 2024 as the agency had to wait for the fifth commissioner’s confirmation.



Unsurprisingly, the carriers are contesting the fine. AT&T spokesperson Alex Byers has stated that the recent FCC move “lacks legal and factual merit.” Byers further added that the FCC is overlooking the company’s immediate steps to address the flaws.

In addition, Verizon spokesperson Richard Young said the bad actors gained access to the location data of a “very small number of customers,” and the firm took swift action to block the unauthorized access.