Why Are the Texas and Florida Attorneys General Suing Netflix Over Consumer Data?

On May 11, 2026, the Texas Attorney General filed a lawsuit against Netflix alleging the streaming company engaged in deceptive practices involving subscriber data.

On September 9, 2026, the Florida Attorney General filed a separate complaint against Netflix in the Circuit Court of the Seventh Judicial Circuit in St. Johns County. Florida alleges violations of the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act and the Florida Digital Bill of Rights.

The Texas lawsuit accuses Netflix of collecting extensive behavioral information about users, without adequately informing consumers or obtaining appropriate consent. Texas also alleges Netflix disclosed or made subscriber information available through relationships with advertising technology companies and commercial data brokers.

Florida separately alleges that Netflix accumulated detailed behavioral data while publicly distinguishing its subscription model from advertising-driven surveillance, then commercialized that information when it entered the advertising business in November 2022.

Netflix has denied the allegations. The company says it takes member privacy seriously and complies with privacy and data-protection laws.

What Do the Texas and Florida Lawsuits Allege?

Texas claims Netflix spent years publicly differentiating itself from advertising-driven technology companies while simultaneously building extensive behavioral data systems.

The complaint alleges Netflix recorded billions of behavioral events associated with how subscribers interacted with the service.

According to the state, that information included viewing habits and preferences, devices, household networks, application usage, searches, pauses, rewinds, skips, browsing activity, rewatches, location-related signals, and other behavior.

Texas alleges consumers were not given sufficiently clear information about the scale and granularity of those practices.

Florida makes overlapping allegations about Netflix’s behavioral-data collection. Its complaint alleges Netflix accumulated years of subscriber information, including viewing, search, playback, device, location, and other usage data, and ultimately deployed that infrastructure in connection with advertising.

Alleged Collection Without Adequate Knowledge or Consent

Much of the Texas lawsuit focuses on the difference between what Texas says Netflix represented publicly and what the state claims was occurring within Netflix’s data systems.

The complaint cites earlier public statements by Netflix executives that distinguished the company from services supported by targeted advertising.

Texas alleges subscribers therefore reasonably believed their paid subscriptions separated Netflix from some of the data practices associated with advertising-funded platforms.

The state contends Netflix’s privacy disclosures failed to adequately explain how much behavioral data the service was collecting or how that information could eventually support advertising-related activities.

Florida alleges a similar “bait-and-switch,” claiming Netflix represented that paid subscriptions offered an alternative to surveillance-driven advertising while it was accumulating behavioral data that would later support its advertising operation.

What Behavioral Information Do Texas and Florida Identify?

The complaint describes a wide range of alleged behavioral signals. Texas says Netflix collected information concerning what users clicked, how long they lingered, what they avoided, when they paused content, what they replayed or skipped, their locations, the devices they used, other devices in their households, and application interactions.

Elsewhere, the complaint specifically identifies play, pause, rewind, abandonment, scroll, search, browse, hover, device, and rewatch events.

Florida alleges collection of many of the same categories of behavioral information, including viewing activity, searches, browsing and scrolling, plays, pauses, rewinds, rewatches, fast-forwards, abandonment, devices, and location information.

The states argue those events could collectively provide a detailed behavioral picture of individual subscribers and households.

What Do the Lawsuits Say Netflix Did With Subscriber Information?

Texas alleges Netflix’s use of behavioral information expanded as the company entered advertising.

Netflix launched its advertising-supported U.S. subscription option in November 2022 and has since expanded its advertising and measurement capabilities.

The Texas complaint alleges Netflix allowed information associated with subscribers to interact with a broader commercial-data ecosystem.

The state specifically references commercial data brokers such as Experian and Acxiom and advertising platforms including Google Display & Video 360 and The Trade Desk. It alleges these arrangements enabled Netflix information to be matched or combined with information collected elsewhere.

Florida makes a similar allegation but identifies additional advertising infrastructure and partnerships. Its complaint alleges Netflix allows advertisers to match first-party data through LiveRamp or directly with Netflix, provides access involving Experian and Acxiom, and has expanded programmatic advertising through Google Display & Video 360, The Trade Desk, Yahoo DSP, and Amazon DSP. Florida alleges these relationships allow subscriber information to be used for identity matching, audience enrichment, measurement, targeting, optimization, and advertising.

What Is the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act?

Texas brought its claims under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices-Consumer Protection Act, commonly called the DTPA. The law prohibits certain false, misleading, and deceptive acts or practices in trade or commerce.

The Attorney General can bring enforcement actions seeking injunctions, civil penalties, and other remedies when the state alleges businesses have engaged in conduct prohibited by the DTPA.

Texas’s Netflix complaint alleges the company’s statements, omissions, data practices, and other conduct violated those consumer-protection provisions.

Florida relies on a different statutory framework. Four counts in the Florida complaint arise under the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act. Florida also brings a fifth claim under the Florida Digital Bill of Rights, alleging Netflix sold certain personal data that qualifies as sensitive data without the consent required by Florida law. This separate privacy-law count is a notable difference between the Florida and Texas complaints.

What Are Texas and Florida Asking the Courts to Do?

Texas is seeking substantial relief. The complaint asks the court for civil penalties of up to $10,000 per DTPA violation, along with other remedies allowed under Texas law.

The state also seeks injunctions that would, among other things, require Netflix to purge data Texas alleges was deceptively collected from Texans and prevent Netflix from using user data for targeted advertising directed at Texans without express, informed consent.

Texas further asks the court to prohibit collection, sharing, selling, use, or disclosure of user data without clear notice and informed consent.

Florida likewise seeks injunctive relief, civil penalties, and other remedies. Among other things, Florida asks the court to require Netflix to purge data allegedly collected deceptively from Floridians, prohibit Netflix from using data collected during periods when the company allegedly promised it would not collect and integrate user data or engage in digital advertising, and stop using advertising systems or algorithms allegedly built from that data.

Florida also seeks civil penalties of up to $50,000 per violation under the Florida Digital Bill of Rights, along with relief available under FDUTPA.

The lawsuits are ongoing, and seeking these remedies does not mean the court will ultimately grant them.

What Subscribers Should Consider

The Texas and Florida lawsuits do not automatically create a private claim for every Netflix subscriber.

However, the allegations may be relevant to consumers who subscribed during the period at issue, particularly longtime subscribers who joined before Netflix launched advertising in November 2022.

Morgan & Morgan is investigating potential Netflix subscriber claims involving consumer privacy and data practices.

If you have questions about whether your subscription history may fall within the current investigation, contact Morgan & Morgan for a free case evaluation.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why are the Texas and Florida Attorneys General suing Netflix?

Texas alleges Netflix engaged in deceptive consumer practices involving how it collected, described, and used subscriber information.

According to the lawsuit, Netflix historically presented itself as different from advertising-driven technology platforms while simultaneously building extensive systems for recording consumer behavior.

Texas alleges Netflix did not adequately disclose the scope of that behavioral data collection and later connected subscriber information with advertising-related systems and third-party commercial data.

Florida makes similar allegations, claiming Netflix accumulated behavioral data while representing its paid service as an alternative to surveillance advertising, then commercialized that information through its advertising business. Florida additionally alleges violations of the Florida Digital Bill of Rights.

The states filed their cases their respective consumer-protection laws and are asking the courts to impose penalties and order changes to Netflix’s practices.

What consumer data does the lawsuit say Netflix collected?

Texas alleges Netflix collected information including viewing habits, viewing preferences, searches, pauses, rewinds, skips, abandoned content, browsing activity, device information, household-network information, location-related information, application activity, and other behavioral events.

Florida alleges many of the same categories of behavioral information, including what subscribers watched, paused, rewound, searched, skipped, and abandoned, as well as device, location, browsing, and other usage information.

The complaints describe the collection as highly granular and allege individual interactions could be associated with users or households to build detailed behavioral information.

Netflix acknowledges collecting various categories of account, device, viewing, and interaction information in its current privacy materials, but disputes the states’ characterization of the scope, disclosure, and use of that data.

The existence of data collection alone does not establish unlawful conduct. The case involves whether Netflix’s particular practices and representations complied with applicable consumer-protection requirements.

What do the lawsuits allege Netflix did with subscriber information?

Texas alleges Netflix ultimately connected subscriber information with the advertising and commercial-data ecosystem.

The complaint names data brokers and advertising-technology companies and alleges information about Netflix subscribers could be matched or combined with information obtained from outside Netflix.

Florida makes a related allegation, claiming Netflix allows subscriber and advertiser information to be matched and enriched through relationships with data brokers and advertising platforms. Florida alleges certain sharing, disclosure, transfer, or making available of Florida consumers’ personal data for advertising, targeting, measurement, enrichment, and monetization constitutes a sale of personal data under the Florida Digital Bill of Rights.

The states contend consumers were not adequately informed that information generated through their paid Netflix subscriptions could be used or accessed in these ways.

Determining exactly what information was shared, how it was processed, and which subscribers were affected will depend on the evidence developed in the litigation and other investigations.

What is the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act?

The Texas Deceptive Trade Practices-Consumer Protection Act is a state consumer-protection law that prohibits certain false, misleading, and deceptive practices in trade or commerce. The Texas Attorney General has authority to enforce the law and may seek injunctions, civil penalties, and other forms of relief.

In the Netflix case, Texas alleges statements and omissions concerning Netflix’s privacy, advertising, children’s data, and consumer tracking violated the DTPA.

The filing of a DTPA lawsuit is an allegation, not a determination of liability. Netflix is entitled to contest the allegations, and the state must establish its claims through the legal process.

The outcome of the Texas enforcement action may also be distinct from any potential claims individual consumers pursue under other laws.

What are the Texas and Florida Attorneys General seeking from Netflix?

Texas asks the court for both financial penalties and changes to Netflix’s practices.

The complaint seeks civil penalties of up to $10,000 for each DTPA violation and other monetary relief permitted by law.

Texas also requests injunctions that could require Netflix to purge allegedly deceptively collected information, obtain express and informed consent for certain targeted-advertising uses, provide clearer notice regarding data practices, obtain parental consent before collecting children’s behavioral information, turn autoplay off by default on kids profiles, and restrict certain data-collaboration practices.

Florida also asks for civil penalties and broad injunctive relief. Its complaint seeks, among other remedies, deletion of data allegedly collected deceptively from Floridians, restrictions on using that data for advertising, and an end to the use of advertising systems, algorithms, or processes allegedly built from such data. Florida also seeks penalties of up to $50,000 per violation under the Florida Digital Bill of Rights.