Verizon Told to Back Off Promoting to Old Customers

Score one for the consumer. The Washington Post is reporting that the federal government, speaking on behalf of former Verizon phone service customers, yesterday sent the communications company a stern message: Stop trying to woo back those consumers who have opted for a new provider.

The report said that Verizon had been using its proprietary customer data to repeatedly hound former customers and try and get them to rejoin the carrier. But a majority of FCC members ruled that this was illegal and violated consumer privacy rights.

“Today we carry out Congress’s unambiguous mandate to protect consumer privacy,” said Robert M. McDowell, a Republican commissioner, according to the report.

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