FCC issue hefty fines on four major wireless carriers

 

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has imposed hefty fines on four major wireless carriers - AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon - for illegally sharing customers' personal data without their consent. The fines total millions of dollars, with T-Mobile facing the largest penalty of $80 million.

The investigation, launched in 2020, found that the carriers had been sharing users' geolocation histories with third-party companies, including data resellers and prisons, as part of their commercial programs. This practice, known as "location aggregation," allowed third-party companies to access sensitive location information without users' knowledge or consent.

Despite promises to stop the practice after it was exposed in 2018, the carriers took nearly a year or longer to finally cease sharing user location data. The FCC found that each carrier attempted to shift the responsibility of obtaining customer consent to downstream recipients of location information, resulting in many instances where no valid customer consent was obtained.

The fines reflect the seriousness of the violation, with AT&T facing a $57 million penalty, Verizon $47 million, and Sprint $12 million. The carriers have responded by stating their intention to appeal the decision, citing a lack of legal and factual merit in the FCC's order.

AT&T argued that the FCC's order unfairly holds them responsible for another company's violation of their contractual requirements to obtain consent. Verizon stated that they are "deeply committed to protecting customer privacy" and had quickly cut off access to the unauthorized party. T-Mobile claimed that their location data-sharing program was discontinued over five years ago and that the fine is excessive.

The issue came to light in 2018 when an investigation by Senator Ron Wyden found that cellphone location information had been shared with Securus, a provider of prison phone services. Wyden called on the FCC to investigate, stating that "no one who signed up for a cell plan thought they were giving permission for their phone company to sell a detailed record of their movements to anyone with a credit card."

The FCC's decision to impose fines on the carriers is a significant step in holding companies accountable for protecting customer privacy. As technology continues to evolve, it is essential that companies prioritize transparency and consent when handling sensitive user data. The fines serve as a warning to companies that violating customer trust will not be tolerated.