A settlement with the Walt Disney Co. in which the entertainment giant will pay $2.75 million to resolving allegations it failed to completely honor consumers’ requests to opt-out of the sale or sharing of their data was approved Wednesday by a judge.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Daniel M. Crowley’s order states that Disney also must implement methods that fully stop Disney’s sale or sharing of consumers’ personal information. The suit was filed Wednesday by the Attorney General’s Office and the resolution was made final during a hearing before Crowley.
“Consumers shouldn’t have to go to infinity and beyond to assert their privacy rights,” Attorney General Rob Bonta said. “Today, my office secured the largest settlement to date under the (California Consumer Protection Act) over Disney’s failure to stop selling and sharing the data of consumers that explicitly asked it to.”
California law is clear that a customer’s opt-out right applies wherever and however a business sells data, said Bonta, who added that asking a business to stop selling one’s data should not be “complicated or cumbersome.”
The Department of Justice’s investigation into Disney stems from a January 2024 investigative sweep of streaming services for potential CCPA violations.
Effective ways to get out of the sale or sharing of a person’s information is one of the “bare necessities” of complying with the CCPA, according to the department, which alleged that Disney’s opt-out processes did not allow a consumer even when logged into their account to completely stop all sale or sharing of their data.
The department’s probe uncovered methods Disney provided allegedly had key gaps that allowed Disney to continue to sell and share consumer data, including that Disney only applied an opt-out request to the specific streaming service the user was watching and often only the specific device the consumer was using.
If a user pulled out using Disney’s webform, the company stopped the sharing of personal data through the company’s own advertising platform and offering, but allegedly continued to sell and share consumer data with specific third-party ad-tech companies whose code Disney embedded in its websites and apps, according to the department.
Disney also failed to provide an in-app, opt-out method in many of its connected TV streaming apps, instead directing consumers to its webform, effectively leaving consumers with no way to stop Disney’s selling and sharing from the apps, the department further alleged.