Pandora along with makers of numerous apps. are subpoenaed over data use collection.
A federal grand jury has opened an investigation into mobile apps and what kind of personal data they might transmit about users, Pandora has revealed. The streaming music company recently amended its S-1 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to note that it had been subpoenaed to produce documents about its user data collection on Android and iOS devices, which the company believes is related to an industry-wide probe into how mobile apps capitalize on user information.
"In early 2011, we were served with a subpoena to produce documents in connection with a federal grand jury, which we believe was convened to investigate the information sharing processes of certain popular applications that run on the Apple and Android mobile platforms," Pandora wrote in its filing. "While we were informed that we are not a specific target of the investigation, and we believe that similar subpoenas were issued on an industry-wide basis to the publishers of numerous other smartphone applications, we will likely incur legal costs related to compliance with the subpoena, management’s attention could be diverted and there is no guarantee that we will avoid costly litigation."
According to a "person familiar with the matter" speaking to the Wall Street Journal, the purpose of this grand jury investigation is to find out whether app makers fully describe to users the kinds of information they need, such as geolocation data or a device's unique identifier, and why they need it. Though most other app makers have not publicly commented on the subpoena, the creator of an iOS app called "Pumpkin Maker" told the Journal that he also got a subpoena that requested documentation about the workings of his app.
Link:
http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2011/04/pandora-other-app-makers-subpoenaed-over-user-data-collection.ars