FTC refiles its lawsuit against mobile data broker Kochava

In a federal court in Idaho on Monday, the Federal Trade Commission of the United States refiled its amended lawsuit against mobile data broker Kochava, as reported by AdExchanger.

The government agency sued the Idaho-based mobile app attribution and app analytics company in August 2022, alleging that it sold the geolocation data from hundreds of millions of mobile devices to other companies through its marketplace, which it says could be used to trace individuals movements and visits to sensitive locations like abortion clinics.

Kochava, which also sued the FTC alleging that the agency was threatening to sue it for not agreeing to reach a settlement, said that it wasn’t engaging in any unfair business practices.

AdExchanger reported in February that the FTC’s complaint against Kochava was likely to move forward, adding that it might need to revise its case.

Last month, U.S. District Court Judge B. Lynn Winmill in Idaho dismissed the FTC’s complaint, saying that even if its allegations were true, it still failed to demonstrate that Kochava posed a ‘’significant risk’’ of harm to consumers. 

However, the judge granted the agency a 30-day period to refile its case and provide more detailed instances of harm. 

While the agency has now refiled its amended case, its details haven’t been revealed yet since the complaint was filed under temporary seal.

‘’Impelling hypothetical privacy violations into an unfair business practice claim didn’t work the first time, and we expect the FTC’s amended complaint will, once again, fail to survive Kochava’s forthcoming motion to dismiss,” said Kochava Founder & CEO Charles Manning said in a statement to AdExchanger.