CyberScoop reports that the Federal Communications Commission's combined $92 million penalty imposed on T-Mobile and Sprint over customer geolocation data sale to third parties has been unanimously decided to be proper by the U.S. District Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.
While geolocation data, which is covered under the Communications Act, should be protected from misuse by telecommunications providers, T-Mobile and Sprint have failed to do so, even after knowing about the abuse of such information, according to Judge Florence Pan. "Neither denies what happened. Instead, they argue that the undisputed facts do not amount to a violation of the law," wrote Pan. Such a decision, which is being reviewed by T-Mobile, has been praised by Center for Democracy and Technology Co-Director of Privacy and Data Eric Null. "This is a huge win for privacy and for everyone who owns a cell phone. Location data is one of the most personal and sensitive types of data, and is particularly harmful in the hands of bad actors," said Null.
While geolocation data, which is covered under the Communications Act, should be protected from misuse by telecommunications providers, T-Mobile and Sprint have failed to do so, even after knowing about the abuse of such information, according to Judge Florence Pan. "Neither denies what happened. Instead, they argue that the undisputed facts do not amount to a violation of the law," wrote Pan. Such a decision, which is being reviewed by T-Mobile, has been praised by Center for Democracy and Technology Co-Director of Privacy and Data Eric Null. "This is a huge win for privacy and for everyone who owns a cell phone. Location data is one of the most personal and sensitive types of data, and is particularly harmful in the hands of bad actors," said Null.
