Google defeats bid for billions of dollars of new penalties in US privacy class action
Google successfully opposed a request for over $2 billion in penalties related to its past data collection practices, winning a ruling in a US privacy class action.Summary
Google has avoided additional penalties in a US privacy class action lawsuit, after a federal judge in San Francisco rejected a bid by consumers for over $2 billion. The plaintiffs had sought to compel Google to disgorge $2.36 billion in alleged profits and alter its data practices, following a jury verdict in September that found the company liable for secretly collecting app activity data from users who had disabled tracking. While the jury awarded $425 million in damages – significantly less than the $31 billion sought – they advised against disgorgement. Judge Richard Seeborg agreed with the jury’s assessment and ruled that the plaintiffs failed to demonstrate irreparable harm or adequately support their profit estimates. Google maintains its innocence and plans to appeal the initial September verdict, but the judge also rejected Google’s attempt to decertify the class of 98 million users and 174 million devices. Despite the ruling, Google has not altered its privacy disclosures or data collection practices.
(Source：The Economic Times)