Class Action Lawsuit Claims Sharpen Illegally Discloses User Data to Facebook, Others
Last Updated on January 21, 2025
Harwell v. McGraw Hill LLC
Filed: September 24, 2024 ◆§ 1:24-cv-07222
A class action claims the company behind Sharpen has illegally shared app and website users’ personal data with third parties without consent.
A proposed class action lawsuit claims the company behind Sharpen has illegally shared app and website users’ personal information with multiple third parties, including Facebook, without consent.
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The 37-page privacy lawsuit explains that Sharpen—a mobile app and website operated by defendant McGraw Hill—offers pre-recorded educational videos and lectures covering a variety of subjects. The case alleges that the defendant intentionally discloses consumers’ personal data and video-viewing activity to third parties each time they use the platform, in violation of a federal law that prohibits a “video tape service provider” from sharing such information without permission.
According to the class action suit, McGraw Hill collects and shares user data through multiple third-party software development kits (SDKs) and tracking tools incorporated into the Sharpen platforms. The third parties that intercept the harvested information—namely, Facebook and software companies Twilio, Sprig and Braze—then use the data for targeted marketing and analytics purposes, the complaint relays.
The filing claims that when a consumer uses the platform, the SDKs and trackers disclose the individual’s name, email address and user ID, along with the title and ID of any videos they view. As the suit tells it, this combination of information is sufficient to allow even an “ordinary person” to link a consumer’s identity to their online activity.
The plaintiff, a New Jersey resident, says he used to regularly watch videos on Sharpen. By doing so, the man had his personal data and video-viewing history disclosed to third parties without his consent, in violation of his protected privacy rights, the case contends.
The Sharpen lawsuit looks to represent anyone in the United States who made an account on the platform, viewed a pre-recorded video on the app or website and had their private information transmitted to a third party.
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