“Brightest Flashlight” Android app disclosed location of 50 million people, but FTC imposes no fine

[onehandle]

Even judging by the low standards of creepy data-mining apps, “Brightest Flashlight” did something pretty egregious. The free app, which was installed by at least 50 million Android users, transmitted users’ real-time locations to ad networks and other third parties. It was, in other words, a stalking device disguised as a flashlight.

In December, the Federal Trade Commission exposed the app’s antics and also announced a proposed settlement with the app maker, GoldenShores Technologies, a one-man operation based in Idaho. In doing so, the agency explained how Brightest Flashlight used legal flim-flam in a privacy policy and user license agreement to obscure what the app was up to.

The terms are now final, and they’re underwhelming, to put it mildly.

In a Wednesday announcement, the FTC confirmed that GoldenShores and owner Erik Geidl are not to collect app users’ geolocation without clearly explaining how and why they’re doing so and, in broad terms, say who is receiving that information. The flashlight app maker will also have to keep records for the FTC to inspect, and Geidl will have to tell the agency about any new businesses he decides to start in the next 10 years. He also has 10 days as of the order to delete all the data he collected.

On paper, the order looks like stern stuff but, in practice, it’s hard to see how this amounts to real punishment. Even though Geidl did something deeply unethical, compromising the privacy of tens of millions of people, he will not pay a cent for his misdeeds.

http://gigaom.com/2014/04/09/brightest-flashlight-android-app-disclosed-location-of-50-million-people-but-ftc-imposes-no-fine

Life in the 'open garden' where your phone comes free with a cheap suit.

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

1. Is creepy illegal?

What, if any, laws did he break? If he did break laws, do those laws have any meaningful penalties attached?

That's the same problem with much of what the financial industry did that was deeply slimy but legal in destroying the US economy and throwing millions out of work. The damage was enormous, but most of the wrongdoing actually broke no laws. Or the BP Gulf spill, where illegal actions were taken, but the penalties for those actions by the laws we have were a piddling tiny fraction of the damage done.

We're a country of law, so we can't punish people for crap they pull that we never thought to make illegal, or punish them in serious ways when the laws we do have specify piddling fines. Obviously, though, we need explicit laws to stop these sorts of things in future, with penalties that actually will prevent companies from doing them again and simply writing fines off as 'a cost of doing business'.

[onehandle]

2. Buyer Beware...

...anything Google.

Free, ain't free.

[Mister Ed]

4. +1

When I installed a flashlight app on my Android phone, I had to look through about a half-dozen of them before I found one that wouldn't upload my location data. The others clearly stated that they would.

When I found one that wouldn't, I ponied up the two bucks to purchase it.

[L0oniX]

3. It's only ok if the NSA does it.