Sportsman’s Warehouse Illegally Shares Website Visitors’ Data with Third Party AddShoppers, Class Action Claims

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A proposed class action lawsuit alleges outdoor sporting goods retailer Sportsman’s Warehouse has unlawfully disclosed online visitors’ personal data to a third-party web-tracking company.

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The 19-page privacy lawsuit says the retailer has embedded on Sportsmans.com tracking technology provided by AddShoppers, whose “SafeOpt” marketing software is designed to collect and pool consumer data gleaned from the websites of its partner businesses for use in targeted advertising. However, AddShoppers’ practices are not only “unsavory,” but illegal, the case claims, arguing that the company’s software “functions as a wiretap” that tracks users “across the internet” without their consent or knowledge.

The suit contends that by installing AddShoppers’ tracking code on Sportsmans.com, and thereby becoming a partner brand in the third party’s “Data Co-Op,” Sportsman’s Warehouse has “conspired” with the web-tracking company to unlawfully capture and use the private information that consumers provided the retailer in confidence.

As the complaint tells it, AddShoppers collects website visitors’ data through the use of “malicious” tracking cookies, which are hidden on a consumer’s browser when they create an account or make a purchase on Sportsmans.com. The third-party cookies automatically send any information the user provides to the website to AddShoppers’ SafeOpt domain, the filing explains.

“AddShoppers surreptitiously collects and pools the sensitive personal information provided by individuals to online retailers in confidence, creates dossiers on those individuals, and then tracks them across the internet to monitor their web browsing for its own financial benefit,” the lawsuit shares.

Despite never providing permission for their data to be shared, consumers unwittingly become part of the SafeOpt network simply by making an online purchase from a company participating in AddShoppers’ Data Co-Op, the suit claims.

The plaintiff, a California resident, says he recently requested his data from AddShoppers and learned that his online activity had been tracked by “at least a dozen companies,” including Sportsman’s Warehouse. The man alleges that although he never authorized the retailer to disclose his personal information, the defendant “carefully tracked” a March 2024 visit to Sportsmans.com and transmitted his data back to AddShoppers.

The Sportsman’s Warehouse lawsuit looks to represent all California residents whose personal information and online activity were collected and tracked by AddShoppers.

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