HBO Hit With Class Action Lawsuit Alleging It Shared Subscriber Info With Facebook

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HBO Facebook Privacy Violation Class Action Lawsuit Overview:

• Who: HBO subscribers have hit the company with a class action lawsuit
• Why: The subscribers allege HBO shared their viewing history with Facebook, in violation of privacy laws
• Where: The class action lawsuit was filed in a New York federal court

HBO shared its subscribers’ viewing histories with Facebook, in violation of federal privacy laws, a new class action lawsuit alleges. 

In a class action complaint lodged against HBO in a New York federal court March 8, two HBO Max subscribers, Angel McDaniel and Constance Simon, alleged the company had violated the Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA), Variety reports.

The pair of subscribers allege that HBO provides Facebook with customer lists, which allows Facebook to match customers’ viewing habits with their Facebook profiles.

HBO did not receive consent from its subscribers to do this, so is in violation of the law, the lawsuit states. 

The plaintiffs say HBO is well aware that Facebook can use the data to its benefit to target people on the platform, as it is a major advertiser with Facebook. The lawsuit says HBO uses Facebook to retarget to its own subscribers. 

HBO Max reportedly has a privacy policy on its website disclosing that it and its partners use cookies to deliver personalized ads, among other purposes. 

However, the VPPA requires that subscribers give separate, clear consent to share their video viewing history.

“In other words a standard privacy policy will not suffice,” the lawsuit states.

Other Streaming Services Sued Under VPPA in Past

The Video Privacy Protection Act was passed in 1988 after a reporter was able to obtain Former Solicitor General of the United States Robert Bork’s rental history from a video store.

Over the last decade, several streaming providers — including Hulu, Netflix, AMC Networks and ESPN — have also faced lawsuits under the VPPA.

In 2011, Netflix was hit with a class action lawsuit concerning its policy of retaining the rental history and video preferences of former members long after they’ve canceled their subscriptions.

The lawsuit claimed the platform violated the Video Privacy Protection Act by keeping all the information it collects from its users “indefinitely,” even after they cancel their accounts. 

In 2015, a judge ruled in favor of Hulu, finding it did not knowingly transmit data to Facebook that could be used to establish an individual’s viewing history.

In 2016, Gannett faced a class action lawsuit alleging it violated video privacy laws by allegedly sending a third party data-analytics company personal information about people who downloaded its USA Today app.

How do you feel about your viewing history being passed on to Facebook without your express consent? Let us know in the comments! 

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