Google, the online search giant has committed to deleting a vast amount of search data, addressing allegations that it improperly tracked millions of US users who believed they were browsing the internet privately.
Google’s decision is significant move to settle a privacy lawsuit by the technology giant focused on online advertising, search engine technology, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, consumer electronics, and artificial intelligence (AI).
As per court documents filed in San Francisco federal court on Monday, Google has agreed to “delete and/or remediate billions of data records” associated with individuals using the Chrome browser’s incognito mode.
Lawyer David Boies hailed the settlement as a landmark step towards holding dominant tech companies accountable for their data collection practices. The proposed settlement, subject to approval by Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, includes provisions for Google to avoid a trial in the class-action suit scheduled for July 30.
Although the settlement does not entail cash damages, it provides Chrome users with the option to pursue separate lawsuits against Google for monetary compensation. Originally filed in June 2020 seeking at least $5 billion in damages, the lawsuit focused on Google’s “Incognito Mode,” which allegedly misled users into believing their online activity was not tracked.
Google spokesperson Jorge Castaneda expressed satisfaction with the settlement, emphasizing the company’s commitment to deleting outdated technical data that was not linked to individuals or used for personalisation purposes. The lawsuit underscored concerns that Google’s practices violated user privacy by exploiting the perceived anonymity of incognito browsing.
Internal Google emails revealed during the lawsuit revealed that despite the assurances of privacy in incognito mode, Google continued to track users’ web traffic for analytics and advertising purposes. The lawsuit accused Google of deceiving users and infringing on their privacy rights by leveraging the incognito feature to gather extensive data on individuals’ online behavior.
The lawsuit’s original complaint painted Google as a repository of detailed personal information, raising concerns about the erosion of privacy in the digital age.
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