FCC Questions U.S. Carriers on Phone Location Data Sales Practices

[curtvaughan]

The carriers are selling their data, not our personal data. The data they are selling is about where and when the carrier sends/recieved data.

Taxi analogy. I can track where my driver goes and when and who he picks up and drop off. That is my data and I can sell it.

Meta-data. Thanks for the taxi analogy. That is superbly illustrative. I hail a taxi, he logs my place and time of entry, my place and time of exit. No name is mentioned, but meanwhile, CCTV cameras and my (likely) smart phone is logging my movements via GPS mapped to my phone number courtesy of my carrier. But yeah, not my personal data, no name is mentioned (wink, nod).

 

[i-John]

Are they going after any of the middle men who are reselling this on to people they shouldn't be?

I could be wrong or not remembering it exactly, but I recall reading that the carriers have very strict guidelines on who it can be shared with when it sells it to these companies (who then resell it on), and that the resellers are in violation of not only their contracts but law enforcement by ignoring the limitations of who's allowed to access the data.

 

[dysamoria]

“... capitalism is self-regulating”... ha ha ha ha ha

 

[cicalinarrot]

And people in charge at those companies are paying with their own money and will face jail, right?
I mean, that sounds like the reasonable way to solve problems like that.

 

[splifingate]

And people in charge at those companies are paying with their own money and will face jail, right?
I mean, that sounds like the reasonable way to solve problems like that.

Sure does sound reasonable.

Respondeat superior, vicarious liability, et al., ibid. (I'm hopeful someone will dig the loop, here *smile*).

The FCC just fined (USD):

TMUS: 80M
T: 57M
VZ: 47M
S: 12M

I'm gana try to be generous, here (VZ is my Carrier)...

VZ Net profit from y2023 was 11.6B

VZ is fined (just-shy) of 47M

A billion is a thousand million.

If my rusty math skills have become newly lubricated, a liability of USD47M on a yearly net profit of USD11.6B is roughly 0.4%

That's like slapping me with a USD200 fine, which is probably what I'd be taxed if I were to exceed the Posted Speed by over 20

*ooh . . . I bet they're scairt!*

I could have driven slower, and VZ should have ceased sharing LD earlier . . . hindsight is, well: hindsight