Published
June 12, 2026
If you streamed anime on the Crunchyroll app, here is what the new VPPA complaint claims about your viewing data being shared with a marketing firm — and why there is nothing to file yet.
Allegations Only · No Settlement Yet
This article describes a class action complaint. The statements below are unproven allegations. Crunchyroll has not been found liable, there is no certified class, and nothing to claim at this time. This page is informational and is not legal advice.
What Is This About?
Crunchyroll, the anime streaming giant with more than 100 million registered users and roughly 13 million paid subscribers worldwide, is facing a new proposed class action lawsuit over how it handles subscribers' viewing data. The case, Cabonios et al. v. Crunchyroll, LLC, No. 2:26-cv-02373, was filed March 5, 2026 in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California by five Crunchyroll subscribers — four adults and one minor — all California residents.The complaint alleges Crunchyroll violated the federal Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA) by disclosing subscribers' personally identifiable information — together with the specific anime titles and episodes they watched — to Braze, Inc., a third-party marketing and customer-engagement company, without obtaining the separate, informed consent the statute requires. The filing of a complaint is only the start of the case: Crunchyroll has not been found liable, no class has been certified, and the allegations remain unproven.
Status
Complaint Filed
Proposed class action filed March 5, 2026 · U.S. District Court, Central District of California
The Allegation
Anime viewing data shared with Braze
Email addresses, device IDs & video titles allegedly sent via an in-app SDK · $2,500 per violation sought under the VPPA
Can I Claim?
No — nothing to claim yet
No settlement, no fund, no claim form at this stage
The Braze SDK Allegations
According to the complaint, Crunchyroll embedded Braze's software development kit (SDK) — a block of third-party code — inside its mobile app at least as far back as 2022. Plaintiffs allege that as users browsed and streamed, the SDK systematically transmitted to Braze:• The subscriber's email address
• Persistent device identifiers
• The titles of the specific videos and episodes the subscriber watched
The complaint describes the mechanics in detail: when a user plays a video within the first twenty seconds of registering, all three data points are allegedly sent to Braze in a single HTTP request; after that, the email address and the video title travel in separate but closely linked requests tagged with the same persistent Device ID, which the suit says still ties the person to the specific episode being watched. The data is allegedly not anonymized, and the complaint says Crunchyroll uses Braze to send targeted push notifications based on users' specific viewing history — something that would be impossible unless identity and viewing data were connected. Braze (formerly known as Appboy) provides marketing automation and analytics services to consumer apps; it is not named as a defendant.
What Is the Video Privacy Protection Act?
The VPPA is a 1988 federal law that prohibits a "video tape service provider" from knowingly disclosing a consumer's personally identifiable viewing information without their informed, written consent — consent that must be obtained separately from the general terms of service. Courts have applied the statute to modern streaming services and apps, and it carries statutory damages of $2,500 per violation, which is why VPPA class actions against streamers, sports leagues, and publishers have multiplied in recent years. For a plain-English breakdown of how the law works and who it covers, see our Video Privacy Protection Act explainer.Crunchyroll Has Been Here Before
This is not Crunchyroll's first VPPA case. In September 2023, the company settled a 2022 class action — Cuevas v. Sony Group Corporation, d/b/a Crunchyroll, No. 1:22-cv-04858 (N.D. Ill.) — for $16 million over claims it shared viewing data with Facebook through the Facebook Pixel; class members who filed received roughly $30 each. That settlement is long closed; its claim deadline passed in 2023, and it provides no avenue for payment today. According to the new complaint, Crunchyroll also agreed in that settlement to modify its use of tracking technologies — and the Cabonios plaintiffs argue the continued data sharing through the Braze SDK makes the alleged violations "particularly egregious" and justifies punitive damages. The new lawsuit involves different technology (an in-app SDK rather than website pixels), a different recipient (Braze rather than Facebook), and a different time period.Other streaming services and devices have faced similar claims — Tubi, for example, agreed to a $20 million streaming privacy settlement over its own data-sharing practices, and a separate complaint accuses Amazon's Fire TV of using automatic content recognition to track what viewers watch.
Who Could Be Covered?
Because no class has been certified, the class definition is not final. The complaint proposes two subclasses of people in the United States who created an account on the Crunchyroll app, watched videos through it, and had their personal viewing information disclosed to Braze during the applicable limitations period:• A minor subscriber subclass — users who were under 18 when their viewing data was allegedly shared (including those who have since turned 18, and parents acting for children who are still minors)
• An adult subscriber subclass — all other affected U.S. users
There is no sign-up list and nothing for subscribers to do right now. If a class is certified or a settlement is reached, covered users would be notified and a claims process would be announced.
What the Lawsuit Seeks
The plaintiffs ask the court to certify the two subclasses and seek liquidated (statutory) damages of $2,500 per class member under the VPPA, punitive damages, restitution, and attorneys' fees and costs, and they demand a jury trial. They also seek injunctive relief that would require Crunchyroll to stop disclosing viewing information to Braze or other third parties without VPPA-compliant consent, delete the data already shared with Braze, and adopt clear consent mechanisms going forward. Whether any money is ever paid depends on how the litigation unfolds — through a settlement, a judgment, or dismissal.Is There a Settlement or Claim Form Yet?
No. This is a newly filed lawsuit, not a settlement. That means:• There is no settlement fund.
• There is no claim form.
• There is no payout, and no deadline to act.
• Crunchyroll subscribers do not need to do anything to "join" at this stage.
Be wary of any site or message claiming you can "file a Crunchyroll claim" today — the only Crunchyroll claims process that ever existed was the 2023 settlement, and it is closed. If this case produces a settlement with a claim form, we will cover it.
What Happens Next?
The case now moves through the early stages of federal litigation: Crunchyroll may answer the complaint or move to dismiss (defendants in VPPA cases frequently challenge whether the data shared counts as personally identifiable information and whether users consented), discovery would follow, and the plaintiffs will at some point ask the court to certify the class. Each step can take months.OpenClassActions.com will watch the docket for major developments — a motion to dismiss, class certification, or a settlement with a claim form — and update this page as the case advances.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a Crunchyroll settlement or claim form in 2026?
No. This is a newly filed proposed class action lawsuit, not a settlement. There is no fund, no claim form, and no deadline. Crunchyroll's earlier $16 million VPPA settlement from 2023 was a separate case, and its claim window closed long ago.What does the lawsuit allege?
The complaint alleges Crunchyroll embedded a Braze SDK in its mobile app that transmitted subscribers' email addresses, device identifiers, and the titles of the anime videos they watched to Braze without the separate, informed consent the VPPA requires. These are unproven allegations.Who is Braze and what data did it allegedly receive?
Braze, Inc. (formerly Appboy) is a customer-engagement and marketing automation company. According to the complaint, its SDK inside the Crunchyroll app allegedly received email addresses, device IDs, and the specific video titles and episodes users watched — enough, plaintiffs say, to tie a person's identity to their viewing history.Who could be covered?
The complaint proposes two subclasses: a minor subscriber subclass for U.S. users who were under 18 when their viewing data was allegedly shared with Braze, and an adult subscriber subclass for all other affected U.S. users who created a Crunchyroll account, watched videos through the app, and had their viewing information disclosed during the limitations period. No class has been certified, so the definitions are not final.How much could users get?
The VPPA provides liquidated (statutory) damages of $2,500 per violation, and the complaint seeks that amount per class member plus punitive damages, restitution, injunctive relief, and fees and costs. But the case is at the complaint stage — there is no settlement, no payout, and no guarantee of any recovery.Read the Class Action Complaint
The full complaint filed in Cabonios et al. v. Crunchyroll, LLC is embedded below.Download the Full Class Action Complaint (PDF)
Sources
• Class Action Complaint — Cabonios et al. v. Crunchyroll, LLC, No. 2:26-cv-02373 (C.D. Cal., filed Mar. 5, 2026)• Justia Dockets — Cabonios et al v. Crunchyroll, LLC, No. 2:26-cv-02373 (C.D. Cal.)
• Anime News Network — Class Action Lawsuit Against Crunchyroll Alleges Disclosure of User Information to 3rd-Party Analytics Company Braze
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Status
Complaint Filed — Proposed Class Action
Case Title
Cabonios et al. v. Crunchyroll, LLC
Case Number
2:26-cv-02373
Court
U.S. District Court, Central District of California
Date Filed
March 5, 2026
Claims
Video Privacy Protection Act (18 U.S.C. § 2710)
Court Docket
Justia Docket
