Books-A-Million class action unlawfully retains video purchase information

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Books-A-Million video purchase data class action lawsuit overview: 

• Who: Paul Christine and Paul McCarthy filed a class action lawsuit against Books-A-Million Inc. 
• Why: Christine and McCarthy claim Books-A-Million unlawfully retains the personally identifiable information of consumers who purchase or obtain video materials from its website. 
• Where: The class action lawsuit was filed in New York federal court.

Books-A-Million illegally retains customer information related to the specific video materials or services that they request or obtain from the company, a new class action lawsuit alleges. 

Plaintiffs Paul Christine and Paul McCarthy claim Books-A-Million breaks the law by allegedly collecting and retaining personally identifiable information from its customers, including their names and video purchase histories, among other things. 

Christine and McCarthy argue Books-A-Million knowingly maintains the digital records of thousands of New York consumers in violation of the New York Video Consumer Privacy Act (NYVCPA), codified as New York General Business Law. 

“Defendants store consumers’ personally identifiable information … in violation of the protections established by the New York legislature,” the Books-A-Million class action states. 

Books-A-Million fails to destroy collected information ‘as soon as practicable,’ class action says

Books-A-Million is required by law but fails to “destroy personally identifiable information” it collects from consumers “as soon practicable,” the Books-A-Million class action alleges. 

“Defendants do not even destroy personally identifiable information within one year from the date the information is no longer necessary for the purpose for which it was collected,” the lawsuit states. 

Christine and McCarthy want to represent a New York class of consumers who purchased videos from Books-A-Million. 

They demand a jury trial and request declaratory and injunctive relief along with an award of statutory damages for themselves and all class members. 

A consumer filed a similar class action lawsuit against TikTok and its owner ByteDance last month, arguing the companies unlawfully track the external activities of individuals using TikTok’s in-app browser. 

Have you had your personally identifiable information unlawfully collected and retained? Let us know in the comments! 

The plaintiffs are represented by Samuel R. Jackson, Joseph Henry (Hank) Bates, III, and Courtney E. Ross of Carney Bates & Pulliam, PLLC.  

The Books-A-Million video purchase data class action lawsuit is Christine, et al. v. Books-A-Million Inc., et al., Case No. 1:23-cv-00485, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. 

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