Location data broker Gravy Analytics was seemingly hacked, experts say

A company that tracks American location data through smartphones has been hacked by Russian cybercriminals, according to cybersecurity researchers

Russian cybercriminals have hacked one of the largest companies that tracks Americans’ location through smartphone data in exchange for ransom, according to two cybersecurity researchers, a person who has posted a massive trove of allegedly hacked files and a notice the company sent to the Norwegian government.

The incident would be one of the largest known breaches of a handful of controversial U.S. companies that sell people’s location data, a gold mine for advertisers because it can be used to extensively map people’s lives, usually without their knowledge.

The Federal Trade Commission last month accused the company, Gravy Analytics, and its subsidiary, Venntel, of illegally collecting and selling Americans’ location data without their knowledge or obtaining proper legal consent. Some of the people Gravy tracked were monitored going into sensitive locations like government buildings, health clinics and places of worship, the FTC said.

Smartphones create significant data both from how they connect to cell towers and wireless internet providers and through apps, particularly third-party apps that require location data. The ubiquity of smartphones in everyday life has spurred an industry of shadowy companies that buy, package and sell data. While the data is usually advertised to marketers, it’s also sold to governments.

Gravy’s website has been down since at least Tuesday. Emails to it, Venntel and Gravy’s parent company, Unacast, couldn’t be delivered. Several executives at the company didn’t respond to requests for comment. 

https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/security/location-data-broker-gravy-analytics-was-seemingly-hacked-experts-say-rcna187038


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