Share 
DraftKings Sportsbook is facing a proposed class action lawsuit in California alleging that the company secretly used third-party tracking software to collect and share visitors’ personal information without their knowledge or consent.
The complaint was filed June 22 in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California by resident Dana Hughes. It accuses the sportsbook of deploying tracking technology that captures identifying information from website visitors and shares it with outside data brokers for marketing purposes.
Hughes alleges that DraftKings embedded software from three data brokers — NextRoll, Comscore and The Trade Desk — onto its website, allowing those companies to build profiles of users based on their online activity. According to the complaint, this happened without customers’ knowledge or consent.
DraftKings has not yet filed a public response to the lawsuit.
How DraftKings allegedly tracked visitors without consent
Browser fingerprinting is a technique that builds a profile of a user by combining device details, browser settings and geolocation data. Cross-referencing that information against existing databases can create a digital profile of a person’s online behavior, which advertisers can then purchase and use for targeted marketing.
According to the lawsuit, Hughes visited the DraftKings website on Dec. 28, 2025, when the site’s third-party code allegedly transmitted information likely to identify her to NextRoll, Comscore and The Trade Desk without her authorization.
Legal trade publications that have reviewed the complaint say it frames the tracking code as an unlawful “trap and trace device” under California Penal Code Section 638.51, which restricts capturing electronic signals or identifying data from a device without a court order or the user’s consent, according to the National Law Review.
The same coverage noted that the complaint also raises claims tied to technology commonly used across the advertising industry:
- Retargeting pixels
- Cookie-based identifiers
- Cookie matching
- Cross-site tracking tools
Other legal reporting confirmed that DraftKings is accused of partnering with the three data brokers to install code that helps identify users and track their activity across websites, according to Bloomberg Law.
Damages, class status and what the plaintiff wants
Hughes is seeking to represent other California residents who allege they experienced the same third-party tracking. The suit claims DraftKings violated the state’s Trap and Trace Law, which bans installing or using devices that capture data on a person’s online activity without legal authorization. It also includes a common-law claim for intrusion upon seclusion, alleging the tracking amounted to an unlawful invasion of users’ privacy.
The complaint seeks statutory damages of $5,000 for each violation of the California Invasion of Privacy Act, along with restitution, punitive damages, disgorgement of profits and an injunction barring DraftKings from continuing the alleged practices in California.
The case will move forward as a full class action only if enough people join. California has no formal minimum number of plaintiffs required to pursue a class action, but courts have traditionally looked for roughly 20 to 40 members to satisfy the “numerosity” requirement.
DraftKings’ mounting legal troubles
The privacy lawsuit adds to a growing list of legal challenges facing DraftKings. Legal analysts note the case is part of a larger wave of California Invasion of Privacy Act litigation targeting companies over routine website analytics and advertising tools, according to the National Law Review.
DraftKings also faces several separate lawsuits alleging it uses aggressive promotions and game-like app features that target users with gambling addictions, and the company disclosed a separate security incident in 2025 involving unauthorized access to a limited number of customer accounts using stolen login credentials.
