LinkNYC is a Privacy Disaster. Here's Why

From its inception, LinkNYC – the public WiFi kiosks that are run by a consortium of companies including Google subsidiary Sidewalk Labs – has always posed a threat to privacy. But after nine years of operation and a recent audit, it’s fair to say LinkNYC represents a barely mitigated privacy disaster. The project puts the personal information of millions of New Yorkers at serious risk and primarily sees the public as walking targets for adverting. LinkNYC’s promoters promised the kiosks would usher in a new era of greater Internet access, particularly for poor people of color. We heard that LinkNYC was a critical tool in the effort to reduce the digital divide between wealthy people with reliable, high-speed access, and those without it. But there is minimal evidence LinkNYC has helped with this worthy endeavor. It’s also not a meaningful solution given its limited reach and focus on providing Internet in the streets rather than in homes. LinkNYC’s funders have repeatedly made privacy protections an afterthought. After the NYCLU raised serious concerns, LinkNYC’s privacy policy was amended in 2017. But it hasn’t been amended since, and it remains too vague and opaque. Worse still, a recent audit commissioned by the City’s Office of Technology and Innovation (OTI) revealed that CityBridge – the consortium behind LinkNYC – repeatedly violated its own privacy policy. Among other issues, the audit shows CityBridge failed to anonymize MAC addresses of user devices. MAC addresses are unique identifiers assigned to each network device and they can be used to identify and track the devices, or the people using them, over time. We need a publicly funded and controlled municipal broadband program that ensures every New Yorker, regardless of who they are or how much money they have, can enjoy high-speed, reliable Internet access. This program must put our privacy rights front-and-center so they aren’t traded away to the highest bidder.