United States of America: Reached settlement in FCC investigation into CaptionCall over alleged consumer privacy violations

On 9 July 2024, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced that it reached a settlement in the investigation into CaptionCall and its parent company, Sorenson Communications, for the unlawful retention of call content and submission of inaccurate information to the Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS) Fund Administrator. The investigation resulted in a Consent Decree mandating a comprehensive privacy and data protection program, enhanced compliance reporting, and a financial settlement totalling nearly USD 35 million. This includes a USD 4 million investment in privacy and data protection for TRS users, a USD 5 million civil penalty, a USD 12 million reimbursement to the TRS Fund, and the relinquishment of over USD 13.6 million in IP Captioned Telephone Service (IP CTS) reimbursement claims.