Furniture Rental Chain Aaron's Inc. Sued by Wyoming Couple for Allegedly Spying on Customers

Do you do business with Aaron's furniture and appliance rental chain? Well, they have just been sued by a Wyoming couple, who accused the company of having software on its computers that lets it track the keystrokes, screenshots and even webcam images of customers while they use the devices at home. While I wouldn't entertain the thought of renting furniture, electronics or anything other than a car or movie, they seem to be very popular with many and the accusations are pretty damning.

The lawsuit was filed on behalf of a Wyoming couple who said they learned about the PC Rental Agent "device and/or software" inside the computer they rented last year when an Aaron's Inc. store manager in Casper came to their home on Dec. 22.

The manager tried to repossess the computer because he mistakenly believed the couple hadn't finished paying for it, the couple said. Brian Byrd, 26, said the manager showed him a picture of Byrd using the computer — taken by the computer's webcam. The image was shot with the help of spying software, which the lawsuit contends is made by North East, Pa.-based Designerware LLC and is installed on all Aaron's rental computers. Source

Could someone please tell me how it makes good financial sense to rent a television and spread out the payments over a period of time before owning it outright? Wouldn't it be easier to just save up the money and get a television or computer? I have noticed Aaron's set up shop in predominantly black or Hispanic areas to pull the wool over their eyes.