Report: Sears settles suit over privacy data collection

Hoffman Estates, Ill. Sears Holdings has agreed to settle a suit issued by the Federal Trade Commission that accused the retailer of collecting personal data from customers without disclosing the practice, according to an article on CNBC.com.

According to the FTC, when Sears merged with Kmart and created Sears Holdings Corp. in 2005, the conglomerate reportedly paid online shoppers $10 to allow it to track their shopping patterns. The company was accused of crossing the line when it began collecting data as shoppers browsed non-Sears sites, including online bank statements, drug prescription records and e-mails.

Based on the settlement, the retailer agreed to destroy collected data and make data-collection disclosures clear to shoppers going forward, the article said.