Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint just got fined almost $200 million for sharing customer data

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Verizon — along with three other wireless carriers — sold access to their customers' location data, according to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission. Photo: Bruce Bennett (Getty Images)

Federal regulators fined four major wireless providers — Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint — almost $200 million for sharing customer's location data without their consent.

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The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on Monday said that four of the U.S.'s largest wireless carriers sold "aggregators" access to their customers' location data. Those firms then resold access to the information to third-party location-based service providers, according to the FCC. By doing so, the wireless carriers effectively offloaded their obligations to obtain consent from customers.

The FCC also alleged that the carriers continued to sell access to their programs without establishing sufficient guardrails to ensure the third-party firms obtained consent from consumers, even after they were made aware of the unauthorized access.

"Our communications providers have access to some of the most sensitive information about us. These carriers failed to protect the information entrusted to them," FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said in a statement. "Here, we are talking about some of the most sensitive data in their possession: customers' real-time location information, revealing where they go and who they are."

The FCC said T-Mobile was fined $80.1 million, AT&T was fined $57.3 million, Verizon was fined $46.9 million, and Sprint was fined $12.2 million. The regulator first proposed the fines in 2020 after conducting an investigation into the carriers. The FCC slightly reduced its proposed fines against Verizon and T-Mobile after additional evidence was reviewed.