The Trade Desk Faces Two Lawsuits Over Alleged Privacy Violations
Adtech company The Trade Desk faces two class action lawsuits. Both claim it secretly tracks people online and collects personal data, like emails and phone numbers. Plaintiffs say the company uses this data without user knowledge or consent. These actions may violate consumer privacy laws, especially in California.
One lawsuit, filed March 31 in California’s Central District, targets The Trade Desk’s tool, Unified ID 2.0 (UID2). The lawsuit says UID2 gathers personal information and helps advertisers build detailed user profiles. Advertisers then use these profiles to target people with real-time ads.
The lawsuit claims The Trade Desk created UID2 to avoid new privacy rules. It says the company kept tracking users despite growing privacy concerns. Plaintiffs argue the company used this shift to launch new tracking methods. They say it lacked transparency and ignored user consent.
The Trade Desk allegedly collects and sells personal data from millions of users. It does this through UID2 and its earlier version, Unified ID. These actions may violate California’s wiretapping laws. Courts haven’t ruled UID2 illegal, but similar lawsuits against Google and Meta have moved forward.
Legal expert Gary Kibel says this case could stand out, particularly because of how UID2 turns personal information into tracking identifiers. He believes the court may examine the methods and locations of user tracking by The Trade Desk. Additionally, the court might assess whether each site offered proper disclosures.
Another lawsuit, filed March 28 in Northern California, targets The Trade Desk’s Adsrvr platform. Plaintiffs claim the company acts like a data broker. They say it tracks users across sites and devices without consent. They accuse it of selling detailed profiles with IP addresses and even health data.
This complaint says The Trade Desk uses its ad tools to increase profits. It plays both ad platform and data manager. Plaintiffs claim it boosts ad prices by using personal data it collects.
It collects and sells data from millions of users. It uses UID2 and Unified ID, which may break California’s wiretapping laws. Courts haven’t ruled UID2 illegal, but similar cases have survived in court.
Gary Kibel says this case stands out. UID2 turns personal data into tracking codes. He says the court could look into how The Trade Desk tracks users. It may also check if sites told users they were being tracked.
Privacy advocates say the lawsuits are serious. They believe these cases may shape future privacy laws and legal action. Arielle Garcia, COO of Check My Ads, says the lawsuits are not frivolous. She sees them as part of a growing push for better privacy rules.
They have not responded to requests for comment. The company is also dealing with weak earnings and criticism of its Kokai platform update.
