Homage ‘Vehemently Denies’ It Lets Spyware Firm Wiretap Website’s Visitors
Sports apparel company Homage removed to U.S. District Court for Central California in Santa Ana a putative class action in which plaintiff Sonya Valenzuela claims Homage secretly enables and allows a third-party spyware company, Kustomer, to wiretap and eavesdrop on…
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the private conversations of everyone who communicates through the chat feature at Homage.com, in violation of the California Invasion of Privacy Act. Homage “vehemently denies these allegations,” said its notice of removal Thursday (docket 8:23-cv-01601). Homage also vehemently denies Valenzuela’s case “is suitable for class treatment,” it said. Valenzuela’s complaint, filed July 14 in Orange County Superior Court, alleges Homage’s actions “are not incidental to facilitating e-commerce, nor are they undertaken in the ordinary course of business.” To the contrary, it says, Homage’s actions “violate industry norms and the legitimate expectations of consumers,” it said. Court records show Valenzuela as a party of record in dozens of lawsuits of various types since Jan. 1. The World Wildlife Fund recently said Valenzuela and her lawyer, Scott Ferrell of Pacific Trial Attorneys, are responsible for filing many nearly identical lawsuits against various entities (see 2307280032). Ferrell is also Valenzuela's attorney in the class action against Homage, which seeks injunctive relief, plus actual, statutory and punitive damages.