Watch CBS News

Can Billboards Spy On You Via Your Smartphone?

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Smart phones are everywhere and they can track our whereabouts, but how about a billboard that can track us when we are nearby with that same phone?

"Once you pass by one of Clear Channel's spying billboards, your every move could be tracked, recorded, and stored," said U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, on Sunday.

Schumer says Clear Channel's billboards -- located throughout the nation, but not in Pittsburgh -- can spy on us.

"Clear Channel plans to provide advertisers with the data on individuals who pass by their billboards by car or by foot, and some of those billboards actually have small cameras."

Clear Channel denies the charge, saying it is only tracking aggregated information made available when you download an app.

On its website, Clear Channel lays out what it calls the RADAR program.

Join The Conversation On The KDKA Facebook Page
Stay Up To Date, Follow KDKA On Twitter

"Here's how it works," the video ad states.  "Using anonymous aggregated date from consumer cellular and mobile devices, RADAR measures consumers real world travel patterns and behaviors as they move through their day, analyzing data on direction of travel, billboard viewability, and visits to specific destinations.  This movement data is then mapped against Clear Channel's displays, allowing advertisers to plan and buy out of home to reach specific audience segments."

Schumer says this technology -- which other billboard companies could adopt -- raises serious privacy issues.

"It's a short step away from tracking this data and holding it to attaching your name to it."

But Clear Channel denies this, saying in a statement from spokesman Jason King:  "RADAR uses only aggregated and anonymized information from privacy-compliant third party data providers who have verified that they adhere to consumer-friendly business practices"

Schumer has called on the Federal Trade Commission to investigate, something U.S. Sen. Bob Casey endorses, and both say data should not be collected, even anonymously, from your cellphone without your specific permission.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.