FCC to Propose Fining AT&T, Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile $200M for Sharing Customer Location Data

[Gutwrench]

The federal government not long ago argued that it could, without a warrant (and obviously without explicit consent from users), compel carriers to turn over location data to it. And now it’s saying that those carriers can’t sell location data to others without explicit consent from users.

That’s a slight misrepresentation. Your claim implies a level of scandalousness that doesn’t exist, which is my point.

The FBI received judicial authorization to Carpenter’s historic CSLI data for a limited timeframe re the Stored Communication Act. Federal Magistrates so ordered the data released to the FBI.

The burden of proof under the SCA is merely reasonable suspicion.

SCOTUS ruled the judicial authorization under the SCA applying the lower level reasonable suspicion was insufficient and required a warrant based on probable cause.

In both scenarios the government was obligated to seek judicial authorization. I don’t see that as hypocritical.

 

[Tech198]

A fine is just that, a fine. It won't change the fact that these companies will continue doing what they are doing.

Not if the fine gets big enough...

If you fine a customer heaps of money, they'll learn by their mistakes more if the fine is high enough, so why wouldn't companies ?

Thy may have more money, but not everyone can afford everything all the time. Jail time is considered a last resort i reckon, not a shortcut when it's just 'easier that way'

All companies gotta do is follow the rules.. If they break it a second time,then jail.

 

[ian87w]

Not if the fine gets big enough...

If you fine a customer heaps of money, they'll learn by their mistakes more if the fine is high enough, so why wouldn't companies ?

Thy may have more money, but not everyone can afford everything all the time. Jail time is considered a last resort i reckon, not a shortcut when it's just 'easier that way'

All companies gotta do is follow the rules.. If they break it a second time,then jail.

That's too naive, imo. A customer is an individual. A company is a different beast altogether, armed with accounting tricks and lawyers that an normal individual person won't have access to.

Let's look at one, let's say, AT&T. They have what, 160million subscribers? They can just add $1 monthly fee for each subscriber and they already netted an extra $160million of gross revenue each month, in addition to whatever profit they got from sharing customers data. The fine becomes a chump change, a business expense.

We already see various taxes governments are applying to these companies are being passed to customers. So the customers are the ones paying for it in the end.