A US federal court has ordered Google to pay $425 million (£316.3 million). This fine follows a lengthy history of the company violating the privacy of millions of users. The ruling came after a jury found the internet search giant liable for collecting data from users even after they had disabled a tracking feature in their Google accounts.
Judge Amit Mehta presided over the case, which has been part of a lengthy legal battle concerning Google’s dominance in online search. The class action lawsuit, which was originally filed in July of 2020, initially covered roughly 98 million defendants Google users on 174 million devices. This puts significant pressure on Google as a jury already found them liable on two of three privacy violation claims. Ultimately, they found that the company did not demonstrate malice.
The court’s ruling effectively hits Google with a monetary damages award. It holds the company accountable by mandating that they provide information to their competitors, leading to more transparency in the tech industry. The original damages sought against Google were over $31 billion. This mind-boggling sum should raise red flags about these platforms’ user privacy policies and data collection practices.
Investors seemed pleased by the ruling, as shares in Alphabet, Google’s parent company, skyrocketed by more than 9% the next day. This rise occurred despite the court’s decision not requiring Google to divest its Chrome web browser, which has been a point of contention in discussions about the company’s market power.
In a statement responding to the ruling, a spokespeople for Google slammed the court’s decision.
“This decision misunderstands how our products work, and we will appeal it. Our privacy tools give people control over their data, and when they turn off personalization, we honor that choice.” – Google spokesperson
The lawsuit emphasized the necessity for companies to respect user privacy rights and adhere to regulations regarding data collection practices. As the case progresses through appeals, it is expected to set important precedents for privacy laws and user rights in the digital age.