A class action lawsuit involving 5.4 million British users has been filed in the United Kingdom against the technology giant, claiming it has bypassed iPhone privacy settings to spy on users.
In an interview with the BBC, Richard Lloyd estimated that the compensation could amount to several hundred pounds per user – an amount that reflects the claim to hundreds of millions of pounds.
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The lawsuit focuses on how Google used cookies to collect personal information from devices to show targeted ads to users. According to the plaintiffs, for several months in 2011 and 2012 Google planted cookies when using a Safari browser on the iPhone, which should block them by default.
“In all the years I have represented consumers, I have rarely seen such a massive abuse of trust, where so many people have no way of seeking compensation,” said Lloyd, former director of the Consumer Protection Organization which is for the BBC. “Through the prosecution we are sending a strong message to Google and other technology giants in Silicon Valley that we are not afraid to fight back.”
Lloyd said he filed the lawsuit after Google told him he had to “come to California” if he wanted to act against her. “It’s disappointing that they are trying to hide behind legal and regional issues instead of taking responsibility for their actions.”
Although Google has agreed to pay $ 22.5 million in a lawsuit filed by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on this issue, Google has also reached a compromise agreement with a small number of British plaintiffs who filed non-class claims “Google responded in response to the BBC:” This is not new – we have defended ourselves in similar cases in the past. We do not believe it has validity, and we will act against the claims. “
