US Telcos Fined $200M for Unauthorized Location Data Sharing

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission has slapped the four major wireless carriers with fines totaling around $200 million for illegally sharing and selling customers' real-time location data without their consent. AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, and Sprint are facing fines ranging from $12 million to over $80 million. The FCC's investigation revealed that these carriers sold access to customer location data to third-party companies, creating a gray market for sensitive information. Despite laws requiring customer consent, the carriers failed to protect this data and continued selling it. The fines come after reports of location data misuse by law enforcement and bounty hunters. The carriers intend to appeal the decision, claiming the fines are excessive and unjust. Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile have all expressed their plans to challenge the FCC's ruling, arguing that they took steps to address the data breaches and support essential services like emergency response.