Up until July 30, 2016, Michigan’s Preservation of Personal Privacy Act (PPPA) prohibited the disclosure of private reading, listening, and viewing materials to other parties. But the complaint for this class action alleges that Christianbook, LLC has disclosed this information to data aggregators, data cooperatives, political organizations, and nonprofit companies, without the consent of the persons involved.
The class for this action is all Michigan residents who, at any point during the pre-July 30, 2016 time period, had their Private Reading, Listening, and Viewing Information disclosed to third parties by Christianbook without their consent.
The complaint quotes the PPPA as saying, “[A] person, or an employee or agent of the person, engaged in the business of selling at retail, renting, or lending books or other written materials … shall not disclose to any person, other than the customer, a record or information concerning the purchase … of those materials by a customer that indicates the identity of the customer.”
The plaintiff for this class action, Timothy Bozung, bought the video The Drop Box from Christianbook. He alleges that the company disclosed this to data aggregators, data cooperatives, political organizations, and nonprofit companies, without his permission. Because of that, he says, he received what the complaint calls “a barrage of unwanted junk mail.” He alleges that Christianbook has therefore violated the PPPA.
As evidence, the complaint cites a list broker, NextMark, Inc., which offers a “Christianbook Catalog Buyers Mailing List,” which includes the Private Reading, Listening, and Viewing Information of more than 3,000,000 of Christianbook’s US customers, for $95 per thousand or 9.5 cents each.
Page 3 of the complaint shows a screen shot of the NextMark offering page. Those who are interested in this information can ask for information on other factors, such as age or gender. A note at the bottom of the page says, “Donor Masterfile and Ethnic & Religious enhancements are available! Please inquired for segment options.”
The complaint alleges that this disclosure “is not only unlawful, but also dangerous because it allows for the targeting of particularly vulnerable members of society.”
Consumer data has become more and more important to advertisers and marketers. The disclosure of information earns revenue for Christianbooks, the complaint alleges, and by renting rather than selling the information, Christianbooks can earn money from it over and over again.
Furthermore, the complaint claims that Christianbooks does not seek or obtain its customers’ consent before it exposes their private Reading, Listening, and Viewing Information to third parties.
Article Type: LawsuitTopic: Privacy
Most Recent Case Event
Christianbook Disclosure of Reading and Viewing Material Michigan Complaint
March 31, 2022
Up until July 30, 2016, Michigan’s Preservation of Personal Privacy Act (PPPA) prohibited the disclosure of private reading, listening, and viewing materials to other parties. But the complaint for this class action alleges that Christianbook, LLC has disclosed this information to data aggregators, data cooperatives, political organizations, and nonprofit companies, without the consent of the persons involved.
Christianbook Disclosure of Reading and Viewing Material Michigan ComplaintCase Event History
Christianbook Disclosure of Reading and Viewing Material Michigan Complaint
March 31, 2022
Up until July 30, 2016, Michigan’s Preservation of Personal Privacy Act (PPPA) prohibited the disclosure of private reading, listening, and viewing materials to other parties. But the complaint for this class action alleges that Christianbook, LLC has disclosed this information to data aggregators, data cooperatives, political organizations, and nonprofit companies, without the consent of the persons involved.
Christianbook Disclosure of Reading and Viewing Material Michigan Complaint