FanDuel Faces Lawsuit Over Alleged Violation of California Privacy Laws
As reported by Covers, FanDuel is facing legal action in California over allegations that it violated state privacy laws by using TikTok’s “trap and trace” software to track website visitors.
Lawsuit Accuses FanDuel of Illegal Data Collection
The lawsuit, filed on July 30, 2024, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, claims that the software collects user data without obtaining prior consent, thereby breaching California’s Trap and Trace Law.
The core of the complaint centers on the process known as “fingerprinting,” where TikTok’s software allegedly gathers personal data from users who visit the FanDuel website anonymously.
This data can then be cross-referenced with the vast amounts of information TikTok has already amassed from millions of users.
According to the lawsuit, this practice allows the company to reconstruct users’ identities and target them with personalized advertising, all without their explicit consent.
Allegations Under the California Trap and Trace Law
California’s Trap and Trace Law is designed to protect consumers from unauthorized tracking of their online activity. The lawsuit against FanDuel asserts that when users visit the FanDuel website, their data is automatically sent to TikTok before they have a chance to set their cookie preferences. This practice, the lawsuit claims, constitutes a direct violation of the Trap and Trace Law.
The lawsuit further alleges that users are not informed about the collaboration between the website and TikTok, which reportedly includes sharing phone numbers and other identifying information with the Chinese government—a serious and highly contentious accusation. Lead plaintiff Courtney Mitchener, represented by the L.A.-based commercial litigation firm Tauler Smith LLP, is seeking statutory damages and an injunction to halt FanDuel’s purported privacy violations.
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