Cecilia Kang reports: The nation’s top wireless carriers say they all collect personal information, including location data, about subscribers and use much of that information to tailor marketing pitches for more services. In letters responding to lawmakers’ questions, they described varied policies on protecting data and how long they retain location and other sensitive information…
Category: Business
TomTom apologies for giving customer driving data to cops
Dan Goodin reports: Navigation device maker TomTom has apologized for supplying driving data collected from customers to police to use in catching speeding motorists. The data, including historical speed, has been sold to local and regional governments in the Netherlands to help police set speed traps, Dutch newspaper AD reported here, with a Google translation…
Windows Phone 7: no on-device location tracking; online another matter
Declan McCullagh reports: Like Apple and Google, Microsoft collects records of the physical locations of customers who use its mobile operating system. Windows Phone 7, supported by manufacturers including Dell, HTC, LG, Nokia, and Samsung, transmits to Microsoft a miniature data dump including a unique device ID, details about nearby Wi-Fi networks, and the phone’s…
Google, Apple Invited to Testify at Senate Hearing on Mobile-Phone Privacy
Sarah Forden reports: Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy invited Google Inc. (GOOG) and Apple Inc. (AAPL) to testify on May 10 at a hearing on privacy and mobile telephones. Leahy, a Vermont Democrat, sent invitations to Google Chief Executive Officer Larry Page and Apple CEO Steve Jobs, urging the companies to testify about how…