
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
[wais.access.gpo.gov]
[Laws in effect as of January 23, 2000]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 23, 2000 and December 4, 2001]
[CITE: 47USC222]

 
          TITLE 47--TELEGRAPHS, TELEPHONES, AND RADIOTELEGRAPHS
 
                 CHAPTER 5--WIRE OR RADIO COMMUNICATION
 
                     SUBCHAPTER II--COMMON CARRIERS
 
                    Part I--Common Carrier Regulation
 
Sec. 222. Privacy of customer information


(a) In general

    Every telecommunications carrier has a duty to protect the 
confidentiality of proprietary information of, and relating to, other 
telecommunication carriers, equipment manufacturers, and customers, 
including telecommunication carriers reselling telecommunications 
services provided by a telecommunications carrier.

(b) Confidentiality of carrier information

    A telecommunications carrier that receives or obtains proprietary 
information from another carrier for purposes of providing any 
telecommunications service shall use such information only for such 
purpose, and shall not use such information for its own marketing 
efforts.

(c) Confidentiality of customer proprietary network information

      (1) Privacy requirements for telecommunications carriers

        Except as required by law or with the approval of the customer, 
    a telecommunications carrier that receives or obtains customer 
    proprietary network information by virtue of its provision of a 
    telecommunications service shall only use, disclose, or permit 
    access to individually identifiable customer proprietary network 
    information in its provision of (A) the telecommunications service 
    from which such information is derived, or (B) services necessary 
    to, or used in, the provision of such telecommunications service, 
    including the publishing of directories.

               (2) Disclosure on request by customers

        A telecommunications carrier shall disclose customer proprietary 
    network information, upon affirmative written request by the 
    customer, to any person designated by the customer.

                 (3) Aggregate customer information

        A telecommunications carrier that receives or obtains customer 
    proprietary network information by virtue of its provision of a 
    telecommunications service may use, disclose, or permit access to 
    aggregate customer information other than for the purposes described 
    in paragraph (1). A local exchange carrier may use, disclose, or 
    permit access to aggregate customer information other than for 
    purposes described in paragraph (1) only if it provides such 
    aggregate information to other carriers or persons on reasonable and 
    nondiscriminatory terms and conditions upon reasonable request 
    therefor.

(d) Exceptions

    Nothing in this section prohibits a telecommunications carrier from 
using, disclosing, or permitting access to customer proprietary network 
information obtained from its customers, either directly or indirectly 
through its agents--
        (1) to initiate, render, bill, and collect for 
    telecommunications services;
        (2) to protect the rights or property of the carrier, or to 
    protect users of those services and other carriers from fraudulent, 
    abusive, or unlawful use of, or subscription to, such services;
        (3) to provide any inbound telemarketing, referral, or 
    administrative services to the customer for the duration of the 
    call, if such call was initiated by the customer and the customer 
    approves of the use of such information to provide such service; and
        (4) to provide call location information concerning the user of 
    a commercial mobile service (as such term is defined in section 
    332(d) of this title)--
            (A) to a public safety answering point, emergency medical 
        service provider or emergency dispatch provider, public safety, 
        fire service, or law enforcement official, or hospital emergency 
        or trauma care facility, in order to respond to the user's call 
        for emergency services;
            (B) to inform the user's legal guardian or members of the 
        user's immediate family of the user's location in an emergency 
        situation that involves the risk of death or serious physical 
        harm; or
            (C) to providers of information or database management 
        services solely for purposes of assisting in the delivery of 
        emergency services in response to an emergency.

(e) Subscriber list information

    Notwithstanding subsections (b), (c), and (d) of this section, a 
telecommunications carrier that provides telephone exchange service 
shall provide subscriber list information gathered in its capacity as a 
provider of such service on a timely and unbundled basis, under 
nondiscriminatory and reasonable rates, terms, and conditions, to any 
person upon request for the purpose of publishing directories in any 
format.

(f) Authority to use wireless location information

    For purposes of subsection (c)(1) of this section, without the 
express prior authorization of the customer, a customer shall not be 
considered to have approved the use or disclosure of or access to--
        (1) call location information concerning the user of a 
    commercial mobile service (as such term is defined in section 332(d) 
    of this title), other than in accordance with subsection (d)(4) of 
    this section; or
        (2) automatic crash notification information to any person other 
    than for use in the operation of an automatic crash notification 
    system.

(g) Subscriber listed and unlisted information for emergency services

    Notwithstanding subsections (b), (c), and (d) of this section, a 
telecommunications carrier that provides telephone exchange service 
shall provide information described in subsection (i)(3)(A) \1\ of this 
section (including information pertaining to subscribers whose 
information is unlisted or unpublished) that is in its possession or 
control (including information pertaining to subscribers of other 
carriers) on a timely and unbundled basis, under nondiscriminatory and 
reasonable rates, terms, and conditions to providers of emergency 
services, and providers of emergency support services, solely for 
purposes of delivering or assisting in the delivery of emergency 
services.
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    \1\ So in original. Probably should be subsection ``(h)(3)(A)''.
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(h) Definitions

    As used in this section:

            (1) Customer proprietary network information

        The term ``customer proprietary network information'' means--
            (A) information that relates to the quantity, technical 
        configuration, type, destination, location, and amount of use of 
        a telecommunications service subscribed to by any customer of a 
        telecommunications carrier, and that is made available to the 
        carrier by the customer solely by virtue of the carrier-customer 
        relationship; and
            (B) information contained in the bills pertaining to 
        telephone exchange service or telephone toll service received by 
        a customer of a carrier;

    except that such term does not include subscriber list information.

                      (2) Aggregate information

        The term ``aggregate customer information'' means collective 
    data that relates to a group or category of services or customers, 
    from which individual customer identities and characteristics have 
    been removed.

                   (3) Subscriber list information

        The term ``subscriber list information'' means any information--
            (A) identifying the listed names of subscribers of a carrier 
        and such subscribers' telephone numbers, addresses, or primary 
        advertising classifications (as such classifications are 
        assigned at the time of the establishment of such service), or 
        any combination of such listed names, numbers, addresses, or 
        classifications; and
            (B) that the carrier or an affiliate has published, caused 
        to be published, or accepted for publication in any directory 
        format.

                  (4) Public safety answering point

        The term ``public safety answering point'' means a facility that 
    has been designated to receive emergency calls and route them to 
    emergency service personnel.

                       (5) Emergency services

        The term ``emergency services'' means 9-1-1 emergency services 
    and emergency notification services.

                 (6) Emergency notification services

        The term ``emergency notification services'' means services that 
    notify the public of an emergency.

                   (7) Emergency support services

        The term ``emergency support services'' means information or 
    data base management services used in support of emergency services.

(June 19, 1934, ch. 652, title II, Sec. 222, as added Pub. L. 104-104, 
title VII, Sec. 702, Feb. 8, 1996, 110 Stat. 148; amended Pub. L. 106-
81, Sec. 5, Oct. 26, 1999, 113 Stat. 1288.)


                            Prior Provisions

    A prior section 222, act June 19, 1934, ch. 652, title II, Sec. 222, 
as added Mar. 6, 1943, ch. 10, Sec. 1, 57 Stat. 5; amended July 12, 
1960, Pub. L. 86-624, Sec. 36, 74 Stat. 421; Nov. 30, 1974, Pub. L. 93-
506, Sec. 2, 88 Stat. 1577; Dec. 24, 1980, Pub. L. 96-590, 94 Stat. 
3414; Dec. 29, 1981, Pub. L. 97-130, Sec. 2, 95 Stat. 1687, related to 
competition among record carriers, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 103-414, 
title III, Sec. 304(a)(6), Oct. 25, 1994, 108 Stat. 4297.


                               Amendments

    1999--Subsec. (d)(4). Pub. L. 106-81, Sec. 5(1), added par. (4).
    Subsecs. (f), (g). Pub. L. 106-81, Sec. 5(2), added subsecs. (f) and 
(g). Former subsec. (f) redesignated (h).
    Subsec. (h). Pub. L. 106-81, Sec. 5(2)-(4), redesignated subsec. (f) 
as (h), inserted ``location,'' after ``destination,'' in par. (1)(A), 
and added pars. (4) to (7).
