FTC OKs Sears Request to Use Tracking Software Without Fully Informing Customers
FTC members 2-0 agreed to Sears' request to let it use some tracking software without telling customers, changing a 2009 settlement that the retailer didn't fully disclose what personal information it collected via app when offering people $10 to install…
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research software on their computers. "While mobile applications are still covered under the modified Order, the Commission added exceptions to the definition of 'Tracking Application' that exclude software that tracks only the configuration of the software program or application itself; information regarding whether the software program or application is functioning as represented; or information regarding consumers’ use of the program or application itself," the FTC announced Wednesday. A dozen comments were made on the request, with some seeking changes to what the company sought or having concerns. The company's petition overall is "deeply lacking in supporting facts, and would set a precedent deleterious to consumer interests," said the World Privacy Forum. Consumers Union, Consumer Federation of America and the Center for Digital Democracy asked the agency "to limit the language of Sears’s third requested exception to the definition of 'Tracking Application' to apply only to instances in which information to be obtained is reasonably expected and necessary to perform a service or transaction the consumer has requested." The new order addressed such concerns, saying some weren't likely to occur or not technically likely. The decision "will help allow the many mobile apps provided by Sears to compete on an equal footing with others in the marketplace," emailed a company spokesman without answering our specific questions. He said the commission recognizes "the mobile ecosystem has changed dramatically since 2009. In that time Sears has expanded its mobile apps offerings to support and encompass everything from shopping at Sears and Kmart to controlling your smart Kenmore appliances."