Tag: Location Privacy

(Nov 12, 2019) Experts say 5G wireless networks could have implications for personal privacy, The Wall Street Journal reports. At a Council on Foreign Relations event in September, AT&T Chairman and CEO Randall Stephenson said the technology will allow wireless companies to collect more data, highlighting the need for federal U.S. privacy legislation. “Cellphone carriers and app makers already collect troves of information about their users, including detailed data on where they live, work and shop,” the r... Read More

(Nov 12, 2019) El pasado 22 de octubre, la asociación civil sin fines de lucro Hiperderecho presentó dos denuncias contra Telefónica del Perú S.A. luego de conocerse, tras una investigación realizada por el equipo periodístico de Ojo Público, que existirían posibles riesgos para la privacidad de la ubicación de los clientes de Telefónica en las bases de datos que dicha compañía vende al Estado. La primera denuncia fue interpuesta ante la Dirección de Supervisión y Control de la Dirección General de Transparenc... Read More

(Nov 11, 2019) Democrats on the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee are calling on the Federal Communications Commission to take action over wireless carriers disclosing customer location data with third parties without customer consent, The Hill reports. The FCC opened an investigation after a report last year that wireless carriers were sharing "real-time customer location data," but in a letter to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, committee members wrote the agency is failing to enforce the Communications Act and... Read More

(Oct 29, 2019) Reuters reports the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has filed a lawsuit alleging Google misled Android smartphone users on its collection and use of personal location data. The ACCC claims that Google did not properly inform users how to disable location tracking on their mobile devices for almost two years. Google allegedly explained only one of two setting changes that needed to be made to ensure location privacy. "Google’s conduct caused users to understand that personal data a... Read More

(Oct 29, 2019) CNET reports the city of Los Angeles has been sued by Uber for allegedly attempting to pry scooter location data from the ride-sharing company. Uber claims the mandate to hand over location data, which is required by the Los Angeles Department of Transportation, raises privacy concerns. An Uber spokesperson said analysts have "clearly and repeatedly asserted that a customer's geolocation is personally identifiable information" and that the company believes the LADOT's requirement "compromises ou... Read More

(Oct 28, 2019) MediaPost reports AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint and Verizon had lawsuits over disclosures of location data sent to arbitration following a ruling by U.S. District Court Judge James Bredar of Maryland. The telecoms had previously argued that arbitration of such disputes was a provision in the user agreements the plaintiffs signed. "Plaintiffs' emphasis on the troubling nature of defendants' alleged misconduct ... fails to provide a legally cognizable basis for invalidating the arbitration clauses," ... Read More

(Oct 25, 2019) Reuters reports U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., have written a letter to U.S. intelligence officials urging an investigation into potential national security risks. The senators presented concerns about TikTok's collection of user data, censored content and the potential of foreign influence on the platform. “With over 110 million downloads in the U.S. alone, TikTok is a potential counterintelligence threat we cannot ignore,” Schumer and Cotton wro... Read More

(Oct 24, 2019) A former Metropolitan police officer lost an appeal in her case against the department for tracking her location, the Guardian reports. Andrea Brown’s superior officer approached the National Border Targeting Centre to gather information to monitor her as she went to Barbados following her father’s death. Brown successfully sued the Met and Greater Manchester Police for the incident and was offered a 18,000 GBP settlement; however, she turned it down, and the case went to court. Brown was awarde... Read More

(Oct 23, 2019) Politico reports on the former U.K.-based Uber driver who continues his battle with the ride-hailing company over drivers’ access to their data. James Farrar sent a letter to Uber in March asking for the information and warning the company it may be in violation of the EU General Data Protection Regulation should it fail to comply. Uber turned over data to Farrar after it received the letter; however, the driver said he did not receive all the information he requested. Uber said in a statement i... Read More

(Oct 11, 2019) Global News reports privacy advocates have become wary of a new citywide alert app in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Questions have been raised as to whether the Halifax Regional Municipality performed a proper review of the hfxALERT system, which officials admitted was not subject to a privacy impact assessment. The app asks for personal information, such as location data and contacts lists. "I don’t know why an app with this sort of described functionality would be looking for information about the use... Read More