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Sprint To Stop Selling Location Data To Third Parties (vice.com)

After AT&T and T-Mobile said they would stop selling their customers' phone location data to third parties, Sprint has followed suit. From a report: Last week, Motherboard revealed that AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint had been selling their customers' real-time location data that ultimately ended up in the hands of bounty hunters and people unauthorized to handle it. Motherboard found this by purchasing the capability to geolocate a phone for $300 on the black market. In response, AT&T and T-Mobile said they were stopping all sales of location data to third parties.

Nearly a week later Sprint has committed to doing the same, in a statement to Motherboard. "As a result of recent events, we have decided to end our arrangements with data aggregators," a Sprint spokesperson told Motherboard in an email. Sprint did not provide a timeline of when this data access selling may end, but T-Mobile and AT&T have previously said their processes will be complete in March.

34 comments

  1. Sure they are by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 4, Interesting
    Differential analysis:

    Sprint, like all the others, is just negotiating a big price increase for their customer's location data.

    These are corporations people, if they could figure out how to kill you and continue to make money, they would.

    Or of course, you could just take them at their word.

    --
    The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    1. Re:Sure they are by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Tobacco, pharma ... they already have figured out how to kill us and make money.

    2. Re:Sure they are by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Exactly correct.

    3. Re:Sure they are by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

      Tobacco, pharma ... they already have figured out how to kill us and make money.

      Exactly. Good point.

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    4. Re:Sure they are by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Oh I'm sure they'll stop selling the data. What they will do now is just sign data sharing agreements to still indirectly give away the data but they won't be directly selling it.

    5. Re:Sure they are by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      they'll get the data hoarders to pay a ridiculous sum for a phone plan in exchange for 'free' location data of everybody.

      see? not 'selling' it anymore.

    6. Re:Sure they are by BringsApples · · Score: 1

      Nah, not the same. If you smoke, it's because one day you made a decision to smoke. And although you may feel like you made the decision to use a phone, you really have to have a phone today to operate as a normal person (very few people don't have a phone). And now they make these phones specifically to track you, so you have no choice in the matter of "the creation of data on you".

      So it's worse than them finding a way to kill you and make money. They found a way to make you live as a slave to the market and make money off of you. Don't forget, most all of the money that empowers these huge corporations has to do with personal data, and marketing to based on that data.

      --
      Politics; n. : A religion whereby man is god.
    7. Re:Sure they are by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

      Nah, not the same. If you smoke, it's because one day you made a decision to smoke. And although you may feel like you made the decision to use a phone, you really have to have a phone today to operate as a normal person (very few people don't have a phone). And now they make these phones specifically to track you, so you have no choice in the matter of "the creation of data on you". So it's worse than them finding a way to kill you and make money. They found a way to make you live as a slave to the market and make money off of you. Don't forget, most all of the money that empowers these huge corporations has to do with personal data, and marketing to based on that data.

      You are mixing points, and losing the main point. Corporations have zero concern for the customer, including if their activities damage or kill you. There is money to be made by selling your personal data, so it simply will be sold, and if a corporation like Sprint says they aren't selling it, that comes under the heading of not providing enough value to the stockholders. As amoral entities, the human mouthpiece serving the corporation and stockholders is simply lying. Exact 1:1 correlation with specific activities is not relevant, the amoral pursuit of money even if it harms the individual customer is the point.

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    8. Re:Sure they are by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      they will rent it out from now on

    9. Re:Sure they are by BringsApples · · Score: 1

      Yes, I understand your point, and you're correct. Corporations will do anything for money because 'We gotta pay the shareholders.' This is pretty simple to understand. Morals don't apply at the corporate level because it's all about money. But when it comes to killing people while making a profit, you can't blame the corporations for that, but rather the people smoking/drinking.

      --
      Politics; n. : A religion whereby man is god.
  2. wait, they were doing that? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What the hell are customers thinking?

    Companies are selling your information in your behalf. That means it has value. Why would you allow them to do this for free, while they changed you to take your data???

    I see a future where humans do nothing for themselves. We attempted freedom too early, we weren't ready.

    1. Re:wait, they were doing that? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      'Cause shawty is an eenie meenie miney mo lover'
      Shawty is an eenie meenie miney mo lover' ooh

  3. Thank you master by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Thank you for only whipping me 50 times instead of 100.

  4. hymenology council reopens origin flap by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    gift from the gods? horrible population control experiment run amok? you decide? the so-called whore of babylon papers of challenge investigation continues.. despite the wgu (world gatekeepers uninon) outrageously emotionally charged protests.. demanding that she be silenced forever.. ask your trusted physician what the flap's all about.. 'if it isn't fair for every one..'

    if that's not enough; learning to walk (& talk) to/like an egyptian.. times to tahrir squared, return to eden.. large beginnings heralding the end of our suck the earth dry greed fear ego based psychocide.

    moms of the nile conference update;

    schedules will be firmed up as soon as the desert stops liquefying in random locations.. the we're all natives now group meets in the little palestine wing daily.. all are welcome.. wmd disposal services available..

  5. But They Could Start Again by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    They said they would stop, But they could start again. Dammit, I want control of my devices.

  6. Incoming price hike by Titanek · · Score: 2

    This likely will be frowned upon by the shareholders, who see their payout shrink, and force the telecompanies to compensate by hiking up subscription prices.

    1. Re: Incoming price hike by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Specific third parties may provide a valuable service. Its the third parties who sell to other parties who are really doing sneaky stuff with your data. And no need to wonder who is good and who is not. Use a literally very very short whitelist

    2. Re:Incoming price hike by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This likely will be frowned upon by the shareholders, who see their payout shrink, and force the telecompanies to compensate by hiking up subscription prices.

      I wonder if the shareholders are also ignorant enough to believe that standing alone on the island of CPNI greed likely won't create a positive impact on revenue...

    3. Re:Incoming price hike by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      There comes a point when having a discussion on shareholder value becomes an exercise in suicidal behavior. Any gander there is no regularly updated list to take the execs off the rolls?

      Just remember kids, we've got jury trials for this, and we ain't got to listen to the law to put these people in jail for the rest of their lives. A citizens arrest is about as polite as it can get.

    4. Re:Incoming price hike by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I would think their shareholders would be pleased. No class action lawsuit over this will be incoming.

  7. Data ownership by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Both phone companies and US banks still share personal data with partner companies also it is an opt-out process to only partially stop third-party data sharing. They only agreed to not sell the tracking data. Read your service agreement.

    Corporations own your data and will use it however they damn well please. Why do you think they lobby so hard to prevent privacy legislation.

  8. Good by omfglearntoplay · · Score: 1

    Certain things even the most "don't give a rat's" attitude general public are creeped about about. Having random people tracking you down physically might just be one of them.

    1. Re:Good by Impy+the+Impiuos+Imp · · Score: 1

      But if you are on the lam, shouldn't you be afraid of bounty hunters?

      Creeps and stalkers, sure. But people paid to track you down for skipping out on your criminal trial?

      This story uses "and bounty hunters!" as if it is an obvious downside rather than upside.

      --
      (-1: Post disagrees with my already-settled worldview) is not a valid mod option.
    2. Re:Good by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      People can find you that you don't want to be able to find you.
      People can find you for the purposes of enforcing the law (these are also people that you may not want to find you)

      You can't have one without the other.
      If you want to live in a nanny state where Big Brother owns you and you're nothing but a serf on a plantation (pay those taxes, citizen!) then go to the UK.
      Otherwise, we in this country prefer to err on the side of freedom.

  9. Now that we've been caught. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    We will no longer sell your live location data. For such a low price.

  10. I don't care why they stopped... by Excelcia · · Score: 1

    ...I care about why they started.

    1. Re:I don't care why they stopped... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      ...I care about why they started.

      Monetizing our data. Customer data is sold all over the place. ALL businesses cannot be trusted with our data. And with that data, they use tactics to appeal to our base instincts to make decisions and purchases that may not be in our base interests.
      And then there is the security issues. Every company that says, "Your data security is very important to us!" is full of shit. I have my health insurance via Anthem. Their website is a flaky piece of shit.
      Then there are the companies that outsource and those companies outsource and by the time it gets around, the data is on some completely insecure system in some third world country - like what the credit bureaus do.

    2. Re:I don't care why they stopped... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They should never have been allowed to collect the data in the first place! Collection and selling of people's data must be stopped! NOW!!!

  11. What They Say vs. What They Do by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I was able to purchase my realtime location just this morning (my brother runs a bail bond business). He routinely uses location data he purchases to track down bail jumpers.

    As of this morning he could still purchase location data, and his vendor says (according to him - I understand this is hearsay) that the foresee no issues in continuing to provide the service despite the carriers' insistence they are going to stop.

    1. Re:What They Say vs. What They Do by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So if a robodialer calls a cell does the signaling for the call give robo the cell's location?
      Is this different from the carrier providing location data?

      If yes and yes, then maybe that's why there are so many robocalls.

  12. Until when? by WillAffleckUW · · Score: 1

    They will restart the monetization as soon as you get distracted by the next shiny thing

    --
    -- Tigger warning: This post may contain tiggers! --
  13. Info and questions by markdavis · · Score: 1

    >"After AT&T and T-Mobile said they would stop selling their customers' phone location data to third parties, Sprint has followed suit."

    1) Yet the information will still be collected.
    2) Yet the information will still be stored.
    3) We have no idea how long the information is stored.
    4) The announcement says "sell", nothing about giving, trading, lending, supplying to the government, etc.
    5) Will they put it in their user agreements/disclosures? Or is this just some verbal "promise"?
    6) Where is Verizon in all this? Somehow their absence doesn't surprise me.

  14. I'll only be satisfied when... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I see the CEOs of these companies hanging on the white house lawn

  15. Kray kray by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    911 in order to track a phone of a suicidal or similar exigent circumstances for which criminal purposes are absolutely excluded have to jump though multiple hoops and fax signed paperwork for a single ping. These people evidently are able to track any phone on the network anytime and the cell companies got paid to allow it. /boggle