Η Weather Channel is advertised as "the weather app most downloaded by most users worldwide".
The American application Weather channel (Weather.com), one of the most popular in the world - and in Greece - for the weather forecast, is accused by the Los Angeles Public Prosecutor's Office that deceived users and sold personal data to third parties that he collected for them from their cell phones and other devices.
Managers could track users and then pass this information on to other companies for a fee, without the users' knowledge, according to them.New York Times and Guardian.
The Weather Channel is advertised as "the weather app most downloaded by most users worldwide". Its monthly users are estimated at about 45 million. Those who "download" the free application, are asked to consent to allow access to their site, in order to get personalized weather forecasts.
According to prosecutors, about 80% of users accept, but are not informed that then the company will have the same benefit from this data.
The American computer giant IBM bought the application from the Weather Company in 2015 for two billion dollars, but not the Weather Channel, which belongs to another company.
The application is not managed by IBM itself, but by TWC Product and Technology LLC, which have sold user data to at least ten other companies, so that the latter can analyze user behavior and be able to send them targeted ads. An IBM spokesman said the application was always clear about the use of geolocation data for users' location.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. court, seeks to stop the practice of selling application data to third parties and seeks a fine of up to $ 2.500 for any violations that occur. Any court ruling will only apply in California.
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