Judge shreds, dismisses iPhone privacy class-action
In re iPhone Application Litigation, 11-MD-02250-LHK (N.D. Cal.; Sept. 20, 2011), iPhone users sued Apple and various advertising networks, alleging that defendants violated their privacy rights "by... allowing third party applications that run on [iOS devices] to collect and make use of... personal information without user consent or knowledge." The court dismisses the claims, but grants leave to amend.
Judge Koh's order has the feel of a professor grading an exam, and it covers a lot of ground, including many cases we've blogged about.
Plaintiffs alleged that Apple made public statements about protecting user privacy but the design of its iOS system "permit[ted] apps that subject consumers to privacy exploits and security vulnerabilities." Plaintiffs alleged that Apple devices allow apps to track, access and use the following customer information: address book, cell phone numbers, file system, geolocation, International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI), keyboard cache, photographs, SIM card serial number, and unique device identifier (UDID).
