Sling Discloses Subscriber Data to Facebook Without Consent, Class Action Lawsuit Claims

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Sling TV faces a new class action lawsuit that alleges the streaming service has quietly transmitted subscribers’ video viewing histories to Facebook without their knowledge or consent.

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The 18-page proposed class action lawsuit claims the online platform, which offers paid subscriptions to a library of movies and TV shows, has violated the federal Video Privacy Protection Act by knowingly disclosing users’ personally identifiable information and viewing data to Facebook by way of web-tracking tools embedded into Sling.com and Sling mobile apps.

According to the privacy lawsuit, the invisible tracking technology integrated into Sling TV includes the Facebook pixel, multiple software development kits, Facebook’s Business Tools and other related trackers. Per the case, this technology allows Sling to record and share with the social media giant certain data about its digital subscribers, such as the title of every video they view and their Facebook ID—a unique identifier that can be used to locate a person’s individual Facebook profile.

The complaint contends that by disclosing a consumer’s online activity alongside their Facebook ID, Sling provides enough information to the social media company to link the user’s identity to their video viewing history.

“Because a [Facebook ID] is used to identify a specific individual and their corresponding Facebook account, Facebook and any ordinary person can use it to locate, access, and view a particular digital subscriber’s Facebook profile, thereby revealing their identity,” the Sling lawsuit asserts. “Put simply, the information that [Sling] shares with Facebook reveals each and every video a particular digital subscriber has requested or viewed.”

The plaintiff, a Sling.com subscriber residing in New York, says he regularly watches videos on the streaming platform. By doing so, the case alleges, the man’s personal data was captured and shared with Facebook without his permission, in violation of his federally protected privacy rights.

The Sling lawsuit looks to represent anyone in the United States who, during the applicable statute of limitations period, logged onto the platform and viewed prerecorded content using their phone or computer browser.

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