Travel Wiretapping Legal Investigations: Were Your Privacy Rights Violated?

Attorneys working with ClassAction.org believe that some online travel companies may be violating state and federal wiretapping laws by sharing consumers’ private information without consent.

Specifically, they suspect certain websites may be using tracking tools to gather information about users — including details about their travel itineraries — and sharing the data with Meta or other third parties for advertising purposes. 

The attorneys are now looking to pursue claims over these potential privacy violations and are gathering consumers who want to participate. Certain states’ privacy laws provide that consumers could be owed anywhere from $100 to $5,000 for violations.

Keep reading for a summary on each website under investigation – including more details on which users may be affected and what data could be getting shared.

Which Travel Websites Are Under Investigation for Potential Wiretapping Privacy Issues?

Hopper.com Wiretap Investigation

Hopper—an accredited travel agency—runs a fast-growing booking platform travelers can use to secure deals on hotels, flights, rental cars and homes.

However, it’s possible that customers may be dealing with more than just the travel bug. Attorneys have reason to believe that Hopper may secretly use tracking tools to share website visitors’ trip details with Facebook in violation of state wiretapping laws. Now, they’re gathering people who may have their data illegally disclosed to take legal action against the company.

So, if you’ve booked travel plans through Hopper.com within the past two years, join others taking action using the link below.

Hopper.com Users Sign Up Here

Margaritaville Privacy Investigation

Vacationers who booked travel on MargaritavilleResorts.com or MargaritavilleAtSea.com may have had their privacy violated, according to attorneys working with ClassAction.org. The attorneys believe the late Jimmy Buffet’s hospitality company—which operates hotels, cruises, restaurants and retail stores under the Margaritaville brand—may have used tracking tools on its travel websites to record users’ activities and share their personal information, including reservation details, with Facebook.

If you booked travel on MargaritavilleResorts.com or MargaritavilleAtSea.com within the past two years and also have a Facebook account, join others taking action.

Margaritaville Users Sign Up Here

IHG.com Investigation Looks into Possible Privacy Violations

Attorneys are looking into the data-sharing practices of IHG Hotels and Resorts—a hospitality company that owns 19 brands, including popular chains like Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express, Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts, Candlewood Suites and Staybridge Suites.

They suspect that IHG.com may use a tracking tool to collect information about certain users as they navigate the site and send this data to Facebook, all without consumers’ knowledge or consent. It’s possible that these transmissions may expose details about website visitors’ hotel reservations and travel itineraries.

Now, attorneys want to take legal action on behalf of affected customers—that is, Facebook users who had an IHG One Rewards membership and made a booking or purchase on IHG.com within the past two years. If that sounds like you, use the link below to join others signing up.

IHG.com Users Sign Up Here

United Airlines Investigation: Was Your Data Shared?

Each year, millions of passengers trust United Airlines to get them safely to their destinations—but can the company be trusted with their data?

Attorneys working with ClassAction.org believe United.com may use tracking tools to secretly share users’ private information with Facebook—including details about their flight itineraries. This suspected data-sharing practice may be illegal under state and federal privacy laws, and attorneys want to pursue legal action against the airline on behalf of website visitors.

Have you booked a flight on United.com within the past two years? If you also have a Facebook account, join others fighting back by clicking the link below.

United.com Users Sign Up Here

Is Kayak.com Sharing Your Data with TikTok?

Attorneys have opened an investigation into Kayak.com, a travel search engine where users can find deals on flights, hotels and vacation packages.

They suspect that Kayak.com—without users’ knowledge or permission—may be using a tracking tool to secretly collect and share information about users with TikTok. The attorneys believe these transmissions may include Kayak.com users’ IP addresses and could potentially result in consumers’ geographic locations being accessible to TikTok’s China-based parent company and the Chinese Communist Party.

It’s possible that this suspected data-sharing practice could violate a state law known as the California Invasion of Privacy Act, and legal action is now being pursued.

Are you a California resident who has a Kayak.com account? If you’ve used the website to book a hotel, flight or rental car within the past year, use the link below to join others signing up.

Kayak.com Users Sign Up Here

Attorneys Launch Privacy Investigation into Travelzoo

Booked travel plans on Travelzoo.com? Whether you found a good deal on a five-star beach retreat in Aruba or the best rate for a round-trip flight to the U.S. Virgin Islands, it’s possible that Facebook may know exactly how you’re spending your vacation.

Attorneys working with ClassAction.org believe Travelzoo.com has embedded a tracking tool into its webpages to secretly record users’ online interactions—including details about their trip itineraries and certain personally identifying information. They suspect Travelzoo may pass this information along to Facebook for targeted advertising purposes, potentially in violation of state wiretapping laws.

Have you booked travel through Travelzoo.com within the past year? If you also have a Facebook account and live in California, Washington, Florida or Pennsylvania, join others taking legal action against the company. You can sign up using the link below.

Travelzoo.com Users Sign Up Here

Hard Rock Online Privacy Violations?

Hard Rock runs a chain of hotels, cafes and casinos famously adorned with rock-and-roll-themed memorabilia. Is it possible that while you were booking your next stay at a Hard Rock Hotel, your personal data was illegally shared with Facebook?

Attorneys working with ClassAction.org seem to think so, and they’re now gathering people to take legal action against the company. The attorneys believe HardRock.com may secretly collect data about users as they navigate the website—including specific details about their hotel reservations. It’s suspected that Hard Rock may send this information to the social media giant along with the user’s Facebook ID, a unique identifier that can be used to match their booking data with their individual Facebook profile.

If you’re a Facebook user who lives in California, Washington, Florida or Pennsylvania and you’ve booked hotel reservations on HardRock.com within the past year, join others taking action.

HardRock.com Users Sign Up Here

How Could My Travel Plans Be Getting Shared?

Many website operators use tracking tools on their websites to gather data about their users.

One such tool, called the Meta pixel, can be embedded on any webpage and programmed to capture nearly every action a visitor takes on the page, such as the buttons they click, the searches they perform and the content they view. This data can then be used by both the website operator and Meta to better target advertisements to their users.

Attorneys are specifically looking into whether the websites mentioned above are using a third-party pixel to track information about users’ travel plans, including details about their booked itineraries. In regard to the Meta pixel, it’s possible that data is being shared along with each person’s Facebook ID, which is a unique identifier that could potentially be used to match the person’s reservation information with their individual Facebook profile.

These suspected data-sharing practices may violate certain wiretapping laws, which prohibit the interception and disclosure of an individual’s electronic communications without their permission. 

What Am I Signing Up For? Is This a Lawsuit?

You are not signing up for a lawsuit, but rather a process known as mass arbitration. This is a relatively new legal technique that, like a class action lawsuit, allows a large group of people to take action and seek compensation from a company over an alleged wrongdoing. Here is a quick explanation of mass arbitration from our blog:

“[M]ass arbitration occurs when hundreds or thousands of consumers file individual arbitration claims against the same company over the same issue at the same time. The aim of a mass arbitration proceeding is to grant relief on a large scale (similar to a class action lawsuit) for those who sign up.”

Some travel websites’ terms of use may contain a class action waiver and/or arbitration clause requiring website users to resolve disputes via arbitration, a form of alternative dispute resolution that takes place outside of court before a neutral arbitrator, as opposed to a judge or jury. It’s for this reason that attorneys working with ClassAction.org have decided to handle these matters as mass arbitrations rather than class action lawsuits.

How Much Does This Cost?

It costs nothing to sign up, and you’ll only need to pay if the attorneys win money on your behalf. Their payment will come as a percentage of your award.

If they don’t win your claim, you don’t pay.

How Much Money Could I Get?

There are no guarantees as to how much money you could get or whether your claim will be successful. However, certain states’ privacy laws specify that consumers whose rights are violated could be owed anywhere from $100 to $5,000 each.

Previous Investigations

The following investigations are complete, and attorneys are no longer signing up affected consumers. 

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