FTC Bans Data Broker From Selling Your Family's Location History

What Just Happened

The Federal Trade Commission just banned data broker Kochava from selling precise geolocation data about people's movements. This isn't about general neighborhood information. It's about detailed tracking that shows exactly where you, your teenagers, and your family members go every day.

The Details

Kochava is a data broker, a company most people have never heard of but that knows a lot about them. The company collected and sold location data from hundreds of millions of mobile devices. This data was so precise it could reveal visits to medical clinics, places of worship, addiction treatment centers, and even which specific house someone lives in.

The FTC found that Kochava sold this sensitive information without getting proper consent from the people being tracked. Buyers could use this data to identify individuals and learn intimate details about their lives. A purchase of Kochava data could show that a specific person visited a cancer treatment center, attended a particular church, or went to a domestic violence shelter.

This data came from regular apps on your phone. Many free apps include tracking code that shares your location with data brokers like Kochava. The company then packaged and sold that information to advertisers, hedge funds, and anyone else willing to pay.

Who Is Affected

Every family member with a smartphone is potentially affected. Teenagers using social media apps, parents with weather or shopping apps, and seniors using health tracking tools all create location data trails. If any of your apps included Kochava's tracking technology, your movements may have been collected and sold.

People who visited sensitive locations face the highest risk. This includes anyone who has visited mental health facilities, reproductive health clinics, immigration services, or support groups. Even visiting these locations once could create a permanent record in a data broker's database.

What You Should Do Right Now

1. Check your phone's location settings today. On iPhone, go to Settings > Privacy & Security > Location Services. On Android, go to Settings > Location. Review which apps have location access and remove it from any apps that don't absolutely need it.

The Bigger Picture

This FTC action represents a significant shift in how regulators treat location data privacy. For years, data brokers operated in the shadows, claiming their data was "anonymous" when it clearly wasn't. The Kochava case confirms what privacy experts have said all along: location data can identify real people and reveal their most private moments.

More enforcement actions will likely follow. Families who take control of their location privacy now will be ahead of the curve.

How GetCyberRight Can Help

Our GCR Data Shield tool helps families discover what information data brokers have collected about them. It guides you through the process of requesting removal from tracking databases and monitors whether your information appears in new places. Think of it as a health checkup for your family's digital privacy, showing you exactly what's out there and helping you take it back.