Los Angeles accuses Weather Channel app of covertly mining user data

The Los Angeles City attorney filed suit against the Weather Channel App, one of the most popular weather apps, for unfairly manipulating users into allowing location tracking by implying that location data would only be used for personalized weather reports, when in fact it was being sold to targeted marketers and hedge funds.  The complaint alleges that the app’s developers did not fully disclose how location tracking would be used as they knew it would result in fewer consumers granting them permission to engage in tracking, and that this constitutes a deceptive business practice in violation of California commercial law.  IBM, the company that owns the Weather Channel, could face fines of $2,500 per violation.

LA City Attorney press release | Complaint