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AT & T defended the sale of user location data in a letter released today, claiming that this practice was technically legal because it did not involve the type of data that the Federal Communications Commission prohibited operators from selling without their consent. Despite this defense, the company claims to have stepped up its plan to stop providing such data in recent months, which, again, reminds AT & T that not everyone is against law.
The FCC is investigating telecommunications companies and associated telecommunications companies, T-Mobile, Sprint and Verizon, for the long-standing practice that has come to light in recent years only after press inquiries. The four major carriers said they wanted to end the practice in June 2018 after a security breach that revealed sensitive user data, but new revelations about the location information that black-market bounty hunters have gained have undermined commitments of the company.
Verizon was the first company to say that it would stop providing this data to aggregators and only pass it on to roadside service providers. Other carriers followed with similar provisions for law enforcement and emergency applications. However, earlier this year, it was discovered that the data was still available to third-party companies such as Zumigo and Microbilt, which were easily accessible to bounty hunters. Motherboard found. The carriers alleged that it was incumbent on its partners not to have processed the data appropriately and to have removed it where necessary, and lawmakers have been pressuring more and more companies to the promise to act and terminate the agreements.
According to AT & T's letter, the type of data that it has provided to third parties without the user's consent is not contrary to federal law, particularly its use of data referred to as A-GPS. The company relies on a technical detail, claiming that the A-GPS data, which is collected according to the company's claims and intended to be used by both emergency services and GPS-based services, like mobile phone applications, are not under the same roof. data that the FCC prohibits sales operators and data stored in the so-called National Emergency Address Database (NEAD). According to AT & T, NEAD data can be more granular and can use Wi-Fi and Bluetooth data to locate the inside, while A-GPS is more general.
"While 911 dispatchers certainly use the A-GPS system to help locate people in emergency situations, it's also an important feature commonly used by developers of many people." Applications for providing location services. For example, ridesharing apps use A-GPS to make sure the car appears in the right place. For these reasons, reports of alleged misuse of A-GPS are inaccurate, "says Joan Marsh, Executive Vice President, Regulatory Affairs and External Relations with AT & T.
Nevertheless, AT & T stated that it had stopped sharing location data with third-party services and aggregators at the end of March. "Our contracts require that all parties who have received AT & T customer location data as part of these agreements remove this information and we verify that they have been properly verified." reserve their conservation obligations, "concludes Marsh. The decision to terminate the sale of such data is likely because although AT & T may technically interpret the FCC rules correctly, its sale may nevertheless violate section 222 of the Communications Act, as stated. by Ars Technica. AT & T did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
AT & T's defense is coming to light today because the FCC is struggling to move the investigation forward. "The FCC has been totally silent about news reports that for a few hundred dollars, mediocre intermediaries can sell your position within a few hundred meters depending on your wireless phone data. This is unacceptable, "wrote commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel, a Democrat, who accused the Republic-controlled FCC of failing to disclose vital information about the progress of the agency's investigation.
"I do not remember having consented to this monitoring when I subscribed to the wireless service – and I bet you either. This is a problem that affects the privacy and security of every American with a cordless phone, "added Rosenworcel. "It's disheartening to think that a black market for this data could mean in the hands of criminals, stalkers and those who wish to hurt us. I will continue to lobby this agency to publish what she knows about what happened. But I do not believe that consumers have to stay in the dark. That's why I'm making these letters available today.
T-Mobile, Sprint and Verizon were less defensive in the letters also published by Rosenworcel today. Verizon stated that it stopped all sales of this data to third parties in November 2018 and entered into agreements with roadside assistance companies in March. T-Mobile said it had taken a similar step by informing its suppliers last fall that it would end its contracts with location-based service providers in March.
Sprint, on the other hand, says he is putting an end to his contracts. "In response to your questions. Sprint currently uses a single location aggregator to provide [location-based services] to two public interest customers – a roadside assistance provider for Sprint customers and a provider that facilitates compliance with state requirements for a lottery that funds the state government ", Wrote Maureen Cooney, Privacy Officer for Sprint. "Effective May 31, 2019, Sprint will no longer use a location aggregator to provide LBS services. Sprint anticipates that after May 31, 2019, it will be able to provide LBS services directly to customers such as those described above, but there are no firm plans at this time. "
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