Categories: Politics

EXCLUSIVE: Red state sues insurer for using customer data to build ‘world’s largest driving behavior database’

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing Allstate insurance company for allegedly illegally collecting, using and selling the driving behavior data of over 45 million Americans.

Paxton filed the suit in the District Court for Montgomery County, Texas, on Monday morning. In the suit, he accuses Allstate, and its subsidiary data analytics company “Arity,” of secretly using driving data from over 45 million Americans’ mobile devices, in-car devices and vehicles to build the “world’s largest driving behavior database,” consisting of “trillions of miles” worth of data.

“Our investigation revealed that Allstate and Arity paid millions of dollars to install Allstate’s tracking software,” Paxton said in a Monday statement. “The personal data of millions of Americans was sold to insurance companies without their knowledge or consent in violation of the law. Texans deserve better and we will hold all these companies accountable.”

Allstate is one of the largest auto, home and life insurance companies in the U.S. It is headquartered in Glenview, Illinois.

COURT ORDERS BIDEN ADMIN TO STOP SELLING BORDER WALL MATERIALS, WAS ‘ILLEGALLY SUBVERTING’ LAWS: TEXAS AG

Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks during a rally featuring former President Trump, Oct. 22, 2022, in Robstown, Texas. (AP Photo/Nick Wagner, File)

The suit said that in 2015, Allstate and Arity developed and integrated software into several third-party apps so that when a consumer downloaded these apps onto their phone, they unwittingly downloaded the tracking software. Once Allstate’s software was downloaded onto a customer’s device, they could monitor the consumer’s location and movement in real time.

According to the suit, the company used the driving data to justify raising customers’ insurance rates and further profited by selling the data to third parties, including other insurance companies.

“Defendants [Allstate and Arity] never informed consumers about their extensive data collection, nor did Defendants obtain consumers’ consent to engage in such data collection,” the suit said. “Finally, Defendants never informed consumers about the myriad of ways Defendants would analyze, use, and monetize their sensitive data.”

TEXAS AG SUES NCAA OVER TRANS INCLUSION IN WOMEN’S SPORTS

Tom Wilson, chairman and chief executive officer of Allstate Corp., listens during the CEO Initiative event in New York, on Sept. 25, 2017. (Misha Friedman/Bloomberg)

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Because tens of millions of Americans, including millions of Texans, were never informed about their driving data being gathered, Paxton argues that Allstate’s data-gathering scheme violates the Texas Data Privacy and Security Act, the Data Broker Law, and the Texas Insurance Code’s prohibition on unfair and deceptive acts and practices in the insurance business.

He is asking the court to permanently block Allstate from continuing to gather and use customers’ data and to impose thousands of dollars in civil penalties per customer.

According to Paxton, this suit is the first enforcement action ever filed by a state attorney general to enforce a comprehensive data privacy law. 

Fox News Digital reached out to Allstate but did not immediately receive a response.

Share

Recent Posts

American Airlines passenger restrained, knocked to floor while barging into cockpit: video

close Video American Airlines passenger restrained, knocked down while trying to enter pilot cockpit: video…

34 minutes ago

Trump nominates Waltz for high-level post after ousting him as national security advisor

President Donald Trump tapped former national security advisor Mike Waltz for his administration's ambassador to…

44 minutes ago

Kaine breaks into Spanish as Dems force vote targeting Trump-El Salvador alliance over deportations

Top Democrats announced an effort Thursday to force the Trump administration to provide a report…

44 minutes ago

California home of suspect accused of doxxing ICE agents raided and searched

close Video Authorities search home of suspect accused of doxxing federal immigration agents Drone footage…

3 hours ago

Sullivan’s Island hit-and-run: Manhunt underway in South Carolina town after armed driver ran down two kids

close Video Fox News Flash top headlines for May 1 Fox News Flash top headlines…

3 hours ago

Trump executive order stands up presidential religious liberty commission

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday establishing a presidential commission on religious liberty. …

3 hours ago