T-Mobile’s problematic privacy practices continue with newfound profiling switch in its Privacy Center.The earliest discoverer was mobile reportthis new analysis switch is set to “on” by default, enabling operators to perform “automated analysis” of user data.
The exact time frame is unclear, but judging from Reddit discussions, the concerning feature appears to have been active for at least a month. Here’s how T-Mobile describes the analytics feature in its privacy statement:
“Profiling” is a specific type of activity covered by some privacy laws and generally refers to the automated processing of personal data for the purpose of evaluating, analyzing or making predictions about your performance at work, economic situation, health, personal preferences, interests, Some personal aspect, behavior, position, or action of reliability. You can choose not to have analytics used for future decisions that have a legal or similarly significant impact on you.
This feature is designed to allow T-Mobile to use your data to create a behavioral profile that can be used to predict your needs or actions when seeking support. However, the broad definition opens the door for T-Mobile to collect vast amounts of sensitive data, including location, interests, finances, and even health information.
It’s worth noting that users were never directly notified of this feature addition or policy change. Additionally, the fact that the switch is enabled by default raises serious concerns about breach of trust. As consumers, we should have the right to explicitly consent to such data collection rather than being forced to manually opt out.
To turn off this feature, you can visit T-Mobile’s Privacy Center dashboard or follow these steps:
- Sign in to your T-Mobile account with full account access
- On desktop: Click Edit Profile Settings
- On your mobile app: Click More, then Profile Settings
- Find “Privacy & Notifications” and select “Privacy Dashboard”
- Scroll down to find the “Analytics and Automated Decisions” section and close it
Unfortunately, T-Mobile doesn’t let you turn off this feature for your entire account at once. You must repeat these actions for each individual row under the account.
This isn’t the first time T-Mobile has quietly co-opted users into its data collection practices. The rise of artificial intelligence and data prediction is inevitable, and their use by businesses is likely to become increasingly common. However, this growth must be accompanied by careful consideration of ethical implications and user privacy.