Google Agrees To Settle $5 bn Lawsuit Over ‘Incognito’ Mode
Finally, Google agreed to settle a consumer privacy lawsuit pursuing at least $5 billion. There were several allegations about Google that it tracked the data of users who were browsing the internet privately in “incognito” mode. The lawsuit was all about the “incognito” mode on Google’s Chrome browser. The plaintiffs claimed that Google gave users a false sense that what they were surfing online was not being tracked by the Silicon Valley tech firm.
Google Agrees To Settle Incognito Mode Lawsuit
The internal Google emails shown in the lawsuit revealed that users using incognito mode were being followed. In a court filing, the judge even confirmed that lawyers for Google got an initial agreement to settle the class action lawsuit. It was originally filed back in 2020. At that time, it claimed that “millions of people” had likely been affected.
Lawyers for the complainants were seeking at least $5,000 for each user who has been tracked by the firm’s Google Analytics or Ad Manager services. These people were tracked even when in private browsing mode and not logged into their Google account. The total will amount to $5 billion. However, reports claim that the settlement amount will likely not reach that figure. Even though, no amount was given for the prior settlement between the parties. The search giant and its lawyers did not respond to an AFP request for comment.
The lawsuit was filed in a California court. It claimed that Google’s practices violated users’ privacy by “intentionally” misleading them with the incognito option. The lawsuit adds:
“Google has made itself an unaccountable trove of information so detailed and expansive that George Orwell could never have dreamed it,”
A formal settlement is anticipated for court approval by February 24, 2024. It would not be wrong to say that class action lawsuits have become the main platform to challenge big tech companies, especially on data privacy matters in the US.
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