Google Seeks Dismissal of Safari Tracking Class Action Lawsuits

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Google Seeks Dismissal of Safari Tracking Class Action Lawsuits

By Matt O’Donnell

Google Inc. urged a federal judge last week to dismiss a multidistrict litigation accusing it of violating various privacy laws by secretly tracking Apple Safari users, saying the plaintiffs were not harmed by the spying and therefore lacked standing.

The Safari secret tracking MDL houses dozens of class action lawsuits accusing Google of installing a secret code that sidesteps Safari’s default privacy settings, allowing Google to install third-party cookies that let advertisers track the browsing activities of Safari users.

Google was ordered to pay a record $22.5 million fine to the FTC last summer to settle contempt charges that Google violated a 2011 consent decree banning it from misrepresenting its privacy settings. The FTC Google Safari settlement is the largest penalty the agency has over obtained for a consent violation.

Dozens of class action lawsuits were subsequently filed by Safari users alleging Google deceived them into believing Safari’s no-tracking settings would block Google from installing third-party cookies.

Google claims these class action lawsuits are nothing more than opportunistic attempts to gain financial compensations despite the fact that none of the plaintiffs were harmed by the Safari tracking.

“These lawsuits invariably seek windfall recoveries under esoteric and inapplicable statutes regardless of whether anyone suffered any actual injury,” Google said in its motion. “And virtually without exception, courts have dismissed such cases at the pleading stage either for lack of standing or for failure to state a claim. This action should be no exception.”

A total of 24 lawsuits have been consolidated in the Google Safari Tracking Class Action Lawsuit MDL.

The consolidated case is In re: Google Inc. Cookie Placement Consumer Privacy Litigation, MDL No. 02358, U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware.

UPDATE 2: On Aug. 29, 2016, a group of consumers urged a federal court to preliminary approve a $5.5 million settlement that would resolve allegations Google circumvented plaintiffs’ web browsers and defeated the default cookie settings in violations of federal and state laws.

UPDATE 3: The Google cookie tracking class action settlement is now open. See how your rights may be affected here.

UPDATE 4: On Dec. 20, 2016, an objector to Google’s $5.5 million class action settlement says the funds should go to Class Members, not third-party organizations.

UPDATE 5: On Aug. 6, 2019, a $5.5 million settlement resolving allegations that Google circumvented users’ privacy to secretly track their online activity was rejected the Third Circuit Court of Appeals.

UPDATE 6: On Jan. 3, 2020, Google users argued that a revised $5.5 million Google privacy class action settlement should be approved after the original settlement was dismissed by an appeals court.

Updated January 28th, 2013

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