Two data brokerage firms in the United States have agreed to cease the collection of private location data pertaining to Americans, following settlements with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The FTC had accused these companies of illegally tracking vast numbers of individuals near sensitive sites such as healthcare facilities and military installations.
The settlements, revealed on Tuesday, will prevent Gravy Analytics, based in Virginia, and Georgia’s Mobilewalla from gathering and storing sensitive granular location data about individuals. This resolution comes after the FTC alleged that both companies—whose business model revolves around accumulating extensive personal information and selling it—offered up millions of identifiable location data points that included visits to clinics and places of worship.
The FTC claims that Gravy Analytics, along with its subsidiary Venntel, gathered and utilized consumers’ location data for commercial and governmental purposes without securing consent from the individuals. Allegedly, they continued using this data even after realizing that consumers had not provided informed consent for the sale of their information.
Furthermore, Gravy Analytics is accused of unjustly selling sensitive personal information, including health choices, political activities, and religious affiliations inferred from individuals’ location data, as stated in the FTC’s complaint.
Mobilewalla is also alleged to have sold sensitive location data that could potentially expose the identities of individuals’ private residences, according to the U.S. federal regulator.
The FTC contends that Mobilewalla procured much of this data through real-time bidding exchanges and third-party aggregators, often without consumers’ awareness that their personal information was being obtained. The complaint asserts that this data was not anonymized, and Mobilewalla allegedly lacked policies for removing sensitive location details prior to selling the information to other entities.
According to the FTC, Mobilewalla also employed sensitive location data to construct audience segments for targeted advertising. For instance, the company produced a report in June 2020 that analyzed individuals protesting the death of George Floyd, assessing their racial backgrounds and whether they resided in the cities where the protests occurred.
As part of the settlements announced on Monday, Gravy Analytics and Mobilewalla are mandated to stop collecting sensitive location data and must erase the historical data they have gathered on millions of Americans.
Both companies are also required to establish a sensitive location data program that includes creating a list of sensitive locations and ensuring that the use, sale, licensing, transfer, sharing, or disclosure of consumer visits to these locations is prohibited. Sensitive locations encompassed in this list include medical facilities, religious institutions, educational institutions, and correctional facilities.
Representatives from Gravy Analytics and Mobilewalla have not yet responded to inquiries from TechCrunch.
This action represents one of the final measures taken by the U.S. government in the closing stages of the Biden administration. On Monday, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau put forth a new proposal aimed at preventing data brokers from selling personal and financial information of Americans, including Social Security numbers and phone numbers.
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