Google faces $2.36B demand from consumers in privacy case
What's the story
Google is facing a demand for an additional $2.36 billion from US users who had won a $425 million jury verdict in a consumer privacy class action lawsuit. The plaintiffs have asked a judge to compel the tech giant to give up the amount, which they described as a "conservative approximation" of Google's alleged ill-gotten gains. Last month, the jury found that Google secretly collected app activity data from millions of users who had turned off an account tracking feature.
Verdict details
Plaintiffs argue damages verdict was 'clearly insufficient'
The jury ruled that Google's actions were "highly offensive, harmful, and without consent." The plaintiffs argued that the $425 million damages verdict was "clearly insufficient to remedy the ongoing and irreparable harm" caused by Google's conduct. However, Google has denied any wrongdoing in this case. The tech giant plans to appeal the decision, maintaining that it collected anonymized data and provided users with privacy tools to control their information.
Lawsuit details
Jury found Google liable on 2 out of 3 claims
The 2020 lawsuit accused Google of accessing users' mobile devices over an eight-year period to collect, store, and use their data. This was said to be in violation of privacy assurances under a setting called Web & App Activity. The jury found Google liable on two out of three privacy claims made by the plaintiffs, who had originally sought over $31 billion in damages during the trial.
Appeal details
Google seeks to vacate verdict
Despite the jury's verdict, Google has not changed its privacy disclosures or data collection practices, according to the plaintiffs. On Wednesday, Google asked Chief US District Judge Richard Seeborg to decertify a class of 98 million users and 174 million devices. The tech giant argued that the claims depend on individualized factors such as app usage and user expectations. It also sought to vacate the verdict due to a lack of common issues.