U.S. carriers confirm they’ll stop selling customer location data to some brokers

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Wireless carriers have a lot of information about its subscribers, including data pertaining to customer location. Wireless carriers have been selling that data for years, but it looks like U.S. operators are now changing their practices a bit.

First up, Verizon Wireless confirmed in a letter to Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) that it would be cutting off location data from third-party brokers, including institutions it has worked with for quite some time, including Zumigo and LocationSmart. The two brokers were able to use that data and sell it off to over 75 different companies.

Verizon says it will be axing those partnership deals with the brokers as soon as possible. AT&T has come forward and said the same thing, adding that it will do so "as soon as practical"with no specific date of termination on the books at the time of publication.

Sprint, in a statement to The Verge, confirmed that it would be ending the sale of subscriber location data as well. Specifically, the network said it "is beginning the process of terminating its current contracts with data aggregators to whom we provide location data."

T-Mobile CEO John Legere took to Twitter to say that he has "personally evaluated this issue" and determined that the Un-carrier will no longer be selling "customer location data to shady middlemen."

Location data sales aren't going away completely, though. The carriers aren't opting out of completely ending the sale of customer location data, but it sounds like they are trimming the fat, at least.

Sources: @JohnLegere, The Verge, Senator Ron Wyden, AP


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