Is Carrier IQ, Samsung and HTC Violating the Federal Wiretap Act?
By Karla Robinson
December 5, 2011
December 5, 2011
- After an Android security researcher discovered that CarrierIQ was capable of collecting personal information from SMS, emails, photos, keystrokes and URLs, the company has been the target of severe criticism.
- Now, CarrierIQ faces a class action lawsuit — as do Samsung and HTC — for violating the Federal Wiretap Act.
- Plaintiffs are demanding millions of dollars in penalties paid to users with the logging software on their devices.
- The company vehemently denies the charges, restating that the software is used solely to help wireless operators provide optimal service by logging information concerning dropped calls and failed messages.
- TechCrunch notes that no carriers face charges as of yet, but are likely to in the near future.