Google tracking class action lawsuit overview:
- Who: A class action lawsuit filed against Google LLC by a group of consumers has been certified by a California federal judge.
- Why: The consumers claim Google secretly tracked the browsing activity of its account holders while they were using third-party apps the company provides services for.
- Where: The class action lawsuit was filed in California federal court.
A federal judge in California has granted class certification to a group of consumers who accuse Google of secretly tracking the browsing activity of individuals who use third-party apps it provides services for.
The judge, in certifying the class, rejected Google’s argument that the consumers’ claims were “inherently personal” and ‘highly individualized” and “typically unsuitable for class treatment.”
“As to the uniform conduct of the class, the actual damages model does, in fact, account for class-wide attitudes and Google’s class-wide alleged wrongdoing,” the judge ruled.
The judge ruled the class members also shared “at least one uniform attitude related to privacy,” as evidenced by their “uniform conduct of switching (Web & App Activity)/(supplemental Web & App Activity) off.”
More than 100 million Google account holders part of two certified classes
Two nationwide classes totaling more than 100 million Google account holders were certified by the judge, including a class of Android users and another class of non-Android users.
The class of Android users consists of third-party app users who claim Google falsely told them they would be able to control whether Google saved data related to their activity on non-Google apps via its Web & App Activity (WAA) button.
The class of non-Android users, meanwhile, consists of third-party app users who argue they had their browsing activity sent to Google despite having the (WAA) setting turned off on their mobile devices.
“It is unreasonable for Google to expect, as it does, that users must also stop using the many apps on their phone, after selecting WAA to be off, to show a lack of consent,” the judge wrote.
Google agreed to a settlement late last month that will resolve claims it secretly tracked the internet searches of millions of users who were under the belief they were browsing privately using the Chrome Incognito browser.
Have you had your browsing activity tracked by Google without your consent? Let us know in the comments.
The plaintiff is represented by Beko Reblitz-Richardson, Mark Mao, James Lee, Josh Stein and Logan Wright of Boies Schiller Flexner LLP, John A. Yanchunis of Morgan & Morgan PA and Ryan Sila of Susman Godfrey LLP.
The Google tracking class action lawsuit is Rodriguez, et al. v. Google LLC, et al., Case No. 3:20-cv-04688, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
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153 thoughts onClass certified in Google app tracking lawsuit
I just received an email from one my credit card companies that ALL of my information, including my d.l. #, social security number, address, and phone number, has been compromised! Probably came from Google because I use it every day,
Yes definitely I have had my data stolen and tracked by Google without my permission. I constantly have to keep going into certain settings having to reset my options aside what Google keeps resetting them back to share data with 3rd parties or send to Google for analytics or user need for better add advertising something like that. But im extremely sick and tired of them going behind my settings and changing them back just to make it look like that was my choice. Sometimes I screen record things like that just to show certain activities I’ve changed on a site, being messed over by so many businesses & agencies will definitely teach you to protect urself in many situations you’d never even dream you’d be in. FACTS!!! MY BELIEF IN THE GOVERNMENT & THE JUSTICE SYSTEM HAVE DEFINITELY SANK TO THE DEEPEST DEPTH OF THE UNKNOWN SEA, AND I’M VERY CONFIDENT IT WILL STAY THERE.
Absolutely my husband and I have, numerous times!
Please add me
Add Me Please… If I could find another service to use besides Google then I would gladly do business with them. Google has ripped me off over useless gift cards that I purchased and they wouldn’t give me a refund or replace the cards, instead Google took the card numbers and froze them where I couldn’t get my money back from them. They keep asking for another email address that I used and I only have one email address and they have it already !?!?!? Yes, ADD ME and maybe I could get my money back or possibly partially paid from these thieves and I know for a fact Googles been using my information from their partners and other sites I use that they may do business for their own use !!!
Add me
Add me definitely tracked.
I use Google to look up stores and other sales or just things on the internet – say apts. to move to and when I get on facebook I see adds for Apts. all over Ft Worth TX – so google used what I looked up to make Ads on my computer – If I look up pots & pans – I get on Facebook and there are Ads for all the stores that sell pots and pans !!!!! so Google uses what I look for on the internet to make ads on facebook !!!!! I Hate this !! it is none of googles business what I search for !!! They like to get into everyone’s business !!!
Definitely add me please, I am tired of being tracked and listened to !!
I would like to be updated on changes for this case.
Make that two of us definitely !!!