A California man has filed a Comcast privacy lawsuit alleging the cable company fails to tell subscribers how long Comcast will maintain their personally identifiable information.

Plaintiff Brandon Hodges filed the class action lawsuit to hold Comcast responsible for alleged violations of the Cable Communications Policy Act of 1984, among other laws.

The Cable Communications Act requires cable companies to provide written notice to subscribers that clearly states how long the company will maintain personally identifiable information, including video activity data and demographic data. Violations of the Cable Communications Act may entitle an affected subscriber to damages of $100 per day, or $36,500 per year.

“Comcast violated (and continues to violate) this requirement by systematically and automatically collecting personally identifiable video activity data from subscribers for advertising purposes without their prior written or electronic consent,” alleges the Comcast privacy lawsuit.

Comcast’s privacy notice allegedly says such information will be maintained while the customer is an active subscriber and for a period of time after inactivating the subscription “if the information is necessary for the purposes for which it was collected or to satisfy legal requirements.” The statement neglects to identify the date at which the personally identifiable information will no longer be maintained or used by the company.

The lawsuit also says these actions by Comcast also constitute violations of the California Invasion of Privacy Act.

Specifics of Comcast Privacy Lawsuit

Hodges says he was a Comcast cable television subscriber from about December 2015 through January 2018.

He said he received a copy of the company’s privacy notice when his subscription began and at least once a year after that. He said the privacy notice was deficient because it did not provide an end date to maintaining his private information.

Throughout the subscription period, Hodges says Comcast collected and maintained his personally identifiable video activity data and demographic information to target advertising to him. In November 2017, Hodges asked Comcast to provide him with the data it had collected on him. The company allegedly responded with only his name, the last four digits of his Social Security number, his service address and telephone number.

However, the Comcast lawsuit alleges that Comcast collects much more information than provided to Hodges. The company allegedly also gathers personally identifiable demographics on subscribers, including:

• Age
• Gender
• Presence and age of children
• Education
• Occupation
• Ethnicity
• Marital status
• Household size
• Property ownership
• Mortgage/loan/insurance information
• Automotive ownership
• General interests
• Magazine subscriptions
• Wealth/financial status

Hodges alleges he “faces a threat of imminent or actual harm” due to Comcast’s continued maintenance and use of his purportedly wrongfully obtained video activity data. He accuses Comcast of continuing to withhold his personally identifiable information from him.

Comcast has been hit with similar lawsuits, including a complaint in March 2018 filed in Philadelphia alleging the same violations. In Michigan, a different lawsuit alleged Comcast’s tracking of the internet browsing habits of subscribers was a violation of the Cable Communications Act. Several members of Congress expressed just last month that they believe Comcast has become too big and needs to be broken down into smaller companies.

The Comcast Privacy Lawsuit is Brian Hodges v. Comcast Cable Communications, LLC, Case No. RG18893764, in the Superior Court of the State of California, County of Alameda.

Learn More

This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.