Google has faced several lawsuits related to privacy issues, resulting in significant settlement payouts. Here are some notable examples:
- $391.5 million privacy settlement (2022): Google reached a record settlement with a 40-state coalition of Attorneys General for misleading users into thinking they had turned off location tracking in their account settings while continuing to collect that information[1].
- $23 million search privacy settlement (2023): Google agreed to pay a settlement to resolve a class-action lawsuit that accused the company of sharing users’ search queries and histories with third-party websites and companies without obtaining their permission. This was claimed to be a violation of privacy laws and a breach of Google’s privacy pledge to its users[2].
- $100 million biometric privacy settlement (2022): Google settled a class-action lawsuit that alleged the company violated Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act by collecting and storing biometric data of individuals who appeared in photographs while residing in Illinois without their consent[3].
- $170 million children’s privacy settlement (2019): Google and its subsidiary YouTube paid a record settlement to the Federal Trade Commission and the New York Attorney General for allegedly collecting personal information from children without their parents’ consent, violating the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) Rule[4].
These settlements highlight the various privacy concerns and legal challenges Google has faced over the years. In many cases, the company has agreed to make changes to its practices and policies to address these concerns and comply with privacy laws[2][1][4].
Sources:
[1] https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/14/technology/google-privacy-settlement.html
[2] https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/14/technology/google-class-action-settlement-claim.html
[3] https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/google-privacy-illinois-claim-settlement-lawsuit/3155394/
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