A federal court in the United States has ordered Google to pay $425 million for violating user privacy by collecting data from millions of users even after they disabled a tracking feature in their accounts. The ruling follows a class action lawsuit filed in July 2020 by a group of users claiming that Google accessed their mobile devices to gather, save, and utilize personal data, contrary to the privacy assurances provided in its Web & App Activity settings. While the plaintiffs sought over $31 billion in damages, the jury found Google liable for two out of three alleged privacy violations but did not determine that the company acted with malice.
The lawsuit encompassed approximately 98 million Google users and 174 million devices. The plaintiffs alleged that Google’s data collection extended to numerous smartphone applications, including those belonging to ride-hailing services Uber and Lyft, e-commerce platforms such as Alibaba and Amazon, and social media networks Instagram and Facebook. In response, Google asserted that when users deactivate Web & App Activity, businesses utilizing Google Analytics may still gather data about their interactions with sites and apps; however, this collected information does not identify individual users and aligns with their privacy choices.
In a separate development, Alphabet, Google’s parent company, experienced a more than 9% increase in stock value following a ruling that it would not be required to sell its Chrome web browser, though it must share information with competitors. This decision arose amid a protracted legal battle regarding Google’s dominance in online search, specifically related to its position as the default search engine across various devices, including its own products, Android and Chrome, as well as those made by Apple. The U.S. Department of Justice has mandated that Google maintain access to Chrome but restrict its exclusive contracts and share search data with rival companies. Additionally, Google is involved in another competition case that is set for trial later this month.
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3dr91z0g4zo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss