Google will have to face a class-action lawsuit accusing it of collecting user data through Chrome without their consent. In a ruling on Tuesday, a federal appeals court reversed a December 2022 ruling that dismissed the case, saying lower courts should review Google’s disclosures and determine “whether a reasonable user reading the information would believe that he or she agreed with them.” Data” collection. “
The class-action lawsuit, first filed in 2020, accuses Google of collecting data from Chrome users — regardless of whether they have Chrome sync enabled. This feature saves bookmarks, passwords, open tabs, and other data to your Google Account so you can easily access it when you’re signed in to Chrome on multiple devices.
The plaintiffs allege that Chrome “intentionally and unlawfully” sent Google browsing history, IP addresses, persistent cookie identifiers and unique browser identifiers without their explicit permission. At the time, Google argued that users agreed to this by accepting the company’s privacy policy. Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers agreed, noting in the dismissal order that “Google fully disclosed the collection of the relevant data, and Plaintiffs consented.”
However, Judge Milan D. Smith Jr. wrote in today’s ruling that Judge Gonzalez Rogers did not consider whether users actually understood the agreement. “Google made general privacy disclosures but promoted Chrome by suggesting that certain information would not be sent to Google unless the user turned on sync,” Smith wrote. The case will be sent back to the lower court for a new hearing.
“We disagree with the ruling and believe the facts of the case are on our side. Chrome Sync helps people use Chrome seamlessly across devices with clear privacy controls. edge. While Google will soon no longer require users to enable Chrome sync to access saved information, Castañeda said “this statement is not related to the lawsuit.”
