“It is imperative that customer complaints be quickly addressed and that systems are established to identify and correct the root cause of the problem and protect consumer privacy”.
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Comcast has settled with the state of California for $33 million after the company allegedly released the names, phone numbers, and addresses of tens of thousands of XFINITY Voice customers who paid to have their phone numbers removed from public listings.
Aside from being refunded, those customers will also receive $100 each as a “sorry” for the inconvenience.
As part of the settlement, Comcast must pay $25 million in penalties and investigative costs to the California Department of Justice and the California Public Utilities Commission.
The personal information of the unlisted and nonpublished customers became available on Comcast’s online directory, in one or more rural phone books, and through nationwide directory assistance, because of Comcast’s errors, the state Public Utilities Commission said.
Comcast, based in Philadelphia, must also improve how it handles customer grievances and strengthen its restrictions on how its data vendors use customer information.
“Publishing personal information that should have been unlisted is unlawful and a troubling breach of privacy”, Attorney General Harris said.
Comcast will refund all fees paid for unlisted service to about 75,000 customers whose information was disclosed over a two-year period.
Comcast’s existing customers will receive their restitution payment as a credit on an upcoming telephone bill.
State Attorney Kamala Harris believes the settlement will result in greater transparency on Comcast’s privacy practices.
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In a statement to BuzzFeed News, a Comcast spokesperson said they were pleased by the settlement “that brings this matter to a close”. “While this matter was operationally resolved almost three years ago, it has always been our goal to find a solution that works for all parties and for the customers who were impacted by this error”. Those with questions can call Comcast at 1-855-290-6262.
