Ajit Pai and Republicans in Congress Helped Enable 'Bounty Hunters' to Track Your Phone

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Jason Koebler Retweeted

The FCC "may find itself without the power to do anything about" location data scandals, "and it certainly bears mentioning, this is entirely by design."

Spot on by @dellcam
https://gizmodo.com/ajit-pai-and-republicans-in-congress-helped-enable-boun-1832030913?utm_medium=sharefromsite&utm_source=gizmodo_twitter&utm_campaign=sharebar … via @gizmodo

Link to tweet

PRIVACY AND SECURITY
Ajit Pai and Republicans in Congress Helped Enable 'Bounty Hunters' to Track Your Phone

Dell Cameron
Thursday 6:26pm

A growing chorus of Washington lawmakers is now pressing federal regulators to do something about the fact that wireless carriers have recklessly sold off data that can pinpoint the locations of their customers’ mobile phones (and thus the customers themselves). The firestorm of inquiries began after it was revealed that during an investigative sting, a Motherboard reporter was able to obtain the physical location of a phone he’d planted in Queens, New York, after shelling out $300 to some shadowy figure in a back-alley deal.

Fifteen U.S. senators joined that chorus on Thursday by seeking a response from the Trump administration, whose regulatory chiefs have had nothing substantive to say about the story, which detailed, in part, how “bounty hunters” had created their own black market for Americans’ location data. ... A letter by the senators to the heads of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reads:

{snip}

To be clear, the regulatory environment that allowed these dubious sales to take place is the direct result of lobbying by the major carriers themselves. Weeks after President Trump was inaugurated, telecom lobbying effectuated the rollback of landmark Obama-era privacy rules intended to protect consumers, by way of notice and consent, from this precise form of abuse. The vote to repeal the rules in early 2017 fell largely along party lines, with only 15 House Republicans siding against it.

What’s more, the FCC, which has been repeatedly called on to investigate the matter, may find itself without the power to do anything about it, even if it does determine the carriers are at fault. ... And it certainly bears mentioning, this is entirely by design.

Two weeks ago @motherboard @vice found anyone could pay a few hundred dollars & learn where your mobile phone is within a few hundred meters. That's outrageous. I called for an investigation. Today 15 senators called on @FCC & @FTC to take action. Amen. https://www.wyden.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/15-senators-location-aggregator-letter-to-fcc-ftc-final.pdf …

Link to tweet

....

Previously at DU:

Report of Bounty Hunters Buying Phone Location Data Leaves U.S. Senators Seething