FTC targets companies that collected and sold sensitive location data

The FTC announced major enforcement actions against data brokers Gravy Analytics/Venntel and Mobilewalla for collecting and selling precise, sensitive location data without sufficient consent, including data tied to medical, religious, and other protected locations. The proposed orders bar the sale or use of sensitive location data (with narrow exceptions), mandate deletion or de-identification of historical data, require supplier consent verification and privacy programs, prohibit misrepresentations, and add consumer deletion mechanisms. The report also notes law enforcement’s prior use of such data (including via Babel Street’s Locate X) and references earlier FTC actions against Kochava, X‑Mode/Outlogic, and InMarket Media.