Markey, in a letter to FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz, said the Carrier IQ software raises a number of privacy concerns for smartphone users. Leibowitz could not be reached for comment.
While Carrier IQ executives were meeting with federal regulators, another controversy about the company erupted in the blogosphere. A response by the FBI to a reporter sparked rumors that the bureau was using the software for domestic surveillance.
Facebook’s Calif. digs
The FBI denied a request for information regarding Carrier IQ filed by a reporter for MuckRock News under the Freedom of Information Act. The reporter had asked for “manuals, documents or other written guidance used to access or analyze data” gathered by any Carrier IQ program. In denying the request, the FBI said it had information but could not disclose it, because it was considered “law enforcement records.”
“The information you requested is located in an investigative file which is exempt from disclosure,” the FBI wrote to reporter Michael Morisy. FBI spokesman Paul Bresson declined to comment on whether the FBI was investigating Carrier IQ or using the software for surveillance purposes.
Carrier IQ released a report that shows the company collects information about carrier networks, data transmission speeds, phone numbers called, Web sites visited and battery life. The company also released a statement about Carrier IQ and the FBI, saying that the data are “not designed for law enforcement agencies and to our knowledge [have] never been used by law enforcement agencies.”
“Carrier IQ [has] no rights to the data gathered and [has] not passed data to third parties,” the statement said. “Should a law enforcement agency request data from us, we would refer them to the network operators. To date and to our knowledge we have received no such requests.”
Carrier IQ first came under scrutiny on Nov. 28 when Eckhart posted a YouTube video, explaining his discovery that Carrier IQ records information about app activity and battery life and appeared to take note when users press any key on the phone or when they compose text messages.
The backlash following Eckhart’s research has prompted several lawsuits against the company, mobile carriers and handset makers, including two class action lawsuits in Illinois.
A class-action lawsuit has also been filed against AT&T, Sprint Nextel, Apple, T-Mobile USA, HTC, Samsung, Motorola and Carrier IQ by mobile phone customers in Delaware.
Staff writer Hayley Tsukayama and staff researcher Julie Tate contributed to this report.
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