Houseparty Class Action Says App Shares User Info With Facebook

A class action lawsuit claims the creators of the Houseparty group chat app are sharing user information with Facebook and other third-parties in violation of privacy laws.

Houseparty (which is sold by Fortnite game creator Epic Games Inc.) offers a virtual “house” where multiple parties can video chat with one another in different “rooms.”

Plaintiff Heather Sweeney of San Diego says she downloaded the app and was harmed when the company disclosed her personally identifiable information to third-parties, including Facebook, without her consent.

According to the Houseparty class action lawsuit, the company’s privacy policy discloses that it does collect certain categories of user data, but not that it shares that data with third-parties. The policy claims the app is “secure” and that there has been “no exposure of customer date or third-party accounts.”

However, the Houseparty class action lawsuit states that those who download and open the app are prompted to connect it to their Facebook account.

The suit claims that this enables the social media giant’s software development kit to collect personally identifiable information, such as the IP address, the phone service carrier and the specific device being used.

In addition, each user device generates a unique advertiser identifier known as an IDFA, which allows third-parties to learn information such as location, behaviors and preferences, according to the filing. This, in turn, allows those parties to tailor their advertising accordingly.

“With the IDFA marketers do not need to know the name, address, or email of a particular user in order to identify, target, and contract that particular user,” the Houseparty class action lawsuit states, noting that such information has “tremendous economic value” to those parties.

This activity is undetectable by Houseparty users and the company fails to warn them of it, the plaintiff states. This effectively bars users from opting out of sharing their information.

The Houseparty class action lawsuit also notes that sharing personal information with Facebook is “especially egregious given the serious defects in Facebook’s handling of consumer information. … Numerous lawsuits are currently pending against Facebook regarding its disclosure of significant quantities of user information to third parties without their consent, and Facebook has faced enforcement action from the Federal Trade Commission and Congressional investigation regarding its misuse of consumer data.”

Still, even Facebook’s own terms of use state that any app using its software development kit must provide “robust and sufficiently prominent notice to users regarding the customer data collection, sharing, and usage.”

Houseparty and similar apps have surged in popularity during the novel coronavirus pandemic, as they offer a virtual gathering place for friends and family members who are confined to their individual homes.

The Houseparty class action lawsuit states that the app logged a record of more than 50 million “daily meeting participants” in March.

According to the Houseparty class action lawsuit, consumers likely would not have downloaded the app at all had they known about the sharing of information with Facebook and other third-parties.

“Plaintiff’s use of Houseparty was predicated on the understanding that Houseparty would take appropriate measures to protect their information,” reads the filing.

The Houseparty class action lawsuit claims negligence, breach of implied contract, unjust enrichment, public disclosure of private facts, and violations of several California laws. The plaintiff is seeking restitution plus damages and court costs through a jury trial.

“Ms. Sweeney wants transparency and the ability to have a say in who has access to her personal information, how it is collected and ultimately how it will be shared,” her attorney said in a statement to San Diego news station NBC 7.

“That was the purpose of the California legislature passing the most forward thinking and advanced piece of consumer legislation last year,” he continued. “Companies like Epic have been on notice for close to a year that these types of policies required change, disclosure and consent from their users. Ms. Sweeney hopes that through this action Epic will begin to take consumer privacy seriously.”

Are you concerned about your privacy on Houseparty? Let us know more in the comment section below.

Sweeney is represented by Joshua B. Swigart of Swigart Law Group APC.

The Houseparty Class Action Lawsuit is Heather Sweeney, et al. v. Life on Air Inc. and Epic Games Inc., Case No. 3:20-cv-00742-BAS-BLM, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California.

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