Spokeo Hit With Class Action Lawsuit

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Controversial website Spokeo.com is facing a class action lawsuit for collecting, marketing, distributing and selling the personal information of hundreds of millions of Americans without their consent or knowledge.

Spokeo is a people-based search engine that allows people to gather information “about anyone you want to find,” including the person’s personal photos and videos, address, marital status, age, occupation, wealth level and a credit/economic health estimate. These in-depth consumer reports are then published online and often contain false and misleading personal information that could be potentially damaging to the individuals Spokeo is reporting on.  The lead plaintiff in the lawsuit claims Spokeo published largely inaccurate and false information about him and has marketed this information to employers at a time when he is seeking employment.

The reports are created by collecting data from people’s social networks, business sites, marketing surveys, email lists, government census, real estate listings, and more — all without their knowledge or consent. Some consumers complain the information gathered on them comes from websites and online accounts they haven’t visited in years, including account names and passwords, and exposes them to ID theft. Much of this information is available for free, but Spokeo reserves the most detailed and personal information for paid subscribers.

The class action lawsuit claims Spokeo’s practices violate the federal Fair Credit and Report Act. It also alleges that even though Spokeo markets itself as a search engine, it is really a Web 2.0-stle consumer-reporting agency, subject to the same rules and regulations as traditional consumer reporting agencies. To back up these claims, the lawsuit further alleges that Spokeo markets its paid subscriptions to employers, law enforcement agencies and persons performing background checks.

The Spokeo class action lawsuit is seeking monetary damages for violating the federal Fair Credit and Report Act and an in injunctive relief barring the website from continuing its violations.

UPDATE 1: The Spokeo class action lawsuit was dismissed in January 2011 but revived by an appeals court in February 2014. Spokeo is appealing the revival to the Supreme Court, in a petition for writ of certiorari filed May 1, 2014.

UPDATE 2: Tech giants Google, Yahoo, eBay, and Facebook urged the Supreme Court on June 6, 2014, to take up Spokeo’s appeal, arguing it could cost companies billions of dollars if plaintiffs are allowed to pursue statutory damages without suffering an injury.

UPDATE 3: On May 16, 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Robins v. Spokeo that plaintiffs must prove both “concrete and particularized” injury when pursuing litigation under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) instead of focusing on mere technical violations.