Taylor Swift issued a cease and desist to a college student who was tracking her private jet.
The Washington Post reports that Jack Sweeney, who attends the University of Central Florida, was told in December to stop posting the whereabouts of the singer’s PJ or he would face legal action.
In addition to having a general page that tracks celebrity jets, Sweeney had also set up the social media page, @taylorswiftsjets, which shared the location and times of Swift’s plane, using public data from the FAA and other data he collected from amateur sources online.
Followers recently noticed the Instagram account had been disabled—now it’s clear why. In the cease and desist, Swift’s attorneys cautioned Sweeney that they would "have no choice but to pursue any and all legal remedies" unless he stopped his "stalking and harassing behavior."
Her team was worried about her safety: "While this may be a game to you, or an avenue that you hope will earn you wealth or fame, it is a life-or-death matter for our Client." The letter added that there was, "No legitimate interest in or public need for this information, other than to stalk, harass, and exert dominion and control."
Sweeney didn’t take the letter in stride, directing his lawyers to tell her team that he hadn’t broken any laws and had been only reporting data that was available to the public. It seems like he’s blocked from making any new Swift-specific pages due to platforms' privacy rules.
It seems that the lawsuit hasn’t yet been filed.
