Bloomberg Law reports that Ubisoft is being sued for allegedly sharing player data from its titular store and subscription service Ubisoft+ with Meta.
In the suitClaimants Trevor Lakes and Alex Rajjoub claim they became aware of the data sharing when they individually purchased or downloaded games from the developer's website. In these cases, they also logged into each other's Facebook accounts, which revealed key personal details such as names, jobs and where they live.
Ubisoft's website allows users to log in through several social accounts, including Facebook. Account linking is common and can show a user's friends what games they are playing or offer in-game incentives from developers.
The plaintiffs also alleged that the French developer does not mention on its website that users will have their public identifiable information (PII) “captured by Meta platforms” via the Pixel tracking software it uses.
This “exposes subscriber PII to any person with ordinary technical skills who received such data,” the complaint reads. It notes that the software could not be on Ubisoft's website, or posted on Facebook, without the direct action or “knowledge and cooperation” of the developer.
And by “forcing” a user's browser to reveal website cookies and event data, Ubisoft is alleged to be “knowingly disclosing information sufficient to allow an ordinary person to identify which video games a specific individual has purchased.”
The complaint also states that Ubisoft and Meta's alleged sharing violates several acts, including the Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA), which is intended to prevent video rental companies from sharing personal information without the express permission of the user.
In addition to monetary damages for all those affected, the plaintiffs are seeking “injunctive relief.” [Ubisoft] immediately remove the Pixel from the Website” or seek (and obtain) direct consent from users.
If neither can be achieved, they want Ubisoft to “anonymize video game titles into URLs, parameters and metadata and/or hash PII users' Facebook user IDs (“FIDs”) in Pixel transmissions.”
At the time of writing, the lawsuit (which can be read in full Here) has not obtained class action certification. The plaintiffs are asking for a jury trial.
The game's developer has reached out to both Ubisoft and Meta for comment. Ubisoft said it “does not comment on legal matters” and we will update Meta's response when it is provided.