FCC Fines Major Wireless Carriers Nearly $200 Million for Illegally Sharing Customer Location Data

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has imposed fines totaling nearly $200 million against the four largest U.S. wireless carriers - AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon - for illegally sharing customers' location data without their consent. The investigation, which began in 2019, found that the carriers sold access to customers' real-time location information to third-party data aggregators, allowing this sensitive data to end up in the hands of unauthorized parties.

T-Mobile faces the largest fine at $80 million, followed by AT&T at $57 million, Verizon at $47 million, and Sprint at $12 million. The FCC argued that the carriers failed to protect the sensitive location information entrusted to them, violating their obligation under federal law to obtain customer consent before using or disclosing such data.

Why this matters: The misuse of sensitive customer location data by wireless carriers raises serious privacy concerns and erodes public trust in these companies. The substantial fines imposed by the FCC emphasize the importance of protecting personal information and ensuring that carriers are held accountable for safeguarding their customers' data.

The carriers have disputed the FCC's findings and plan to appeal the decision. AT&T claimed that the FCC order "lacks both legal and factual merit" and intends to challenge the fine. The other carriers have also indicated they will appeal, arguing that the location-data sharing programs were discontinued years ago and that the penalties are excessive.

Senator Ron Wyden, who had previously investigated the issue, praised the FCC's action, stating that the companies had put customers' lives and privacy at risk by selling their location data without consent. The fines, while substantial, represent a small fraction of each carrier's annual revenues.

The FCC's decision marks the culmination of a multi-year investigation into the carriers' practices. The agency found that the companies continued to sell access to location data even after becoming aware that their safeguards were ineffective. The fines serve as a reminder of the importance of protecting sensitive customer information and the consequences for failing to do so.

Key Takeaways

• FCC fines 4 major US carriers $200M for illegally sharing customer location data
• T-Mobile faces largest fine at $80M, followed by AT&T ($57M), Verizon ($47M), Sprint ($12M)
• Carriers failed to obtain customer consent before using or disclosing location data
• Carriers dispute findings, plan to appeal; FCC emphasizes importance of protecting customer data
• Fines represent small fraction of carriers' revenues, but highlight need for accountability