Texas Attorney General Ken Paxtonhas filed a lawsuit against insurance company Allstate and its subsidiary Arity for illegally collecting, using and selling driving data from more than 45 million Americans.
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The two companies are accused of paying millions of dollars to developers to embed tracking code into widely used mobile apps to collect people's location and movement data without their knowledge or consent.
This data was used to profile people’s driving habits and adjust insurance or renewal costs, allowing the company to identify risks and set prices accordingly. Additionally, Allstate and Arity allegedly sold this data to other insurance companies so they could do the same. This violates the Texas Data Privacy and Security Act (TDPSA), as users of the app were not informed of this targeted data collection and did not consent to it.
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The lawsuit, filed in Montgomery County District Court, alleges the integration of the tracking software (Arity SDK) into apps like Life360, GasBuddy, Fuel Rewards and Routely. These four apps have been downloaded more than 115 million times on Google Play.
The apps allegedly secretly collected sensitive location data every 15 seconds if users gave them location permission during installation/launch. In addition, the lawsuit alleges that Allstate also purchased location data directly from Toyota, Lexus, Mazda, Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat, Jeep, Maserati and Ram, to use for the same purposes.
The lawsuit alleges violations of the TDPSA, the Data Broker Act, and the Texas Insurance Code regarding unfair and deceptive acts and practices.
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Surveillance without permission violates personal privacy and can lead to serious ethical and legal concerns. It undermines trust, as individuals expect transparency and respect for their personal boundaries. Organizations or individuals who engage in such practices risk damaging their reputations and facing significant consequences. Respecting consent and adhering to privacy laws are essential to maintaining integrity and accountability in any surveillance activity.
Source: bleepingcomputer
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