Google’s $5 Billion Pledge to Settle Groundbreaking Lawsuit

(CTN News) – In response to charges that it followed the data of users who believed they were surfing in private, Google has reached an agreement to settle a consumer privacy lawsuit that sought at least $5 billion in damages with the plaintiffs.

A preliminary agreement to settle the class action lawsuit that was initially filed in 2020 and claimed that “millions of individuals” had likely been affected was confirmed by the judge in a court filing. The lawsuit said that the lawyers representing Google had reached an agreement to settle the litigation.

A minimum of five thousand dollars was being sought by the attorneys representing the plaintiffs for each user who, according to the plaintiffs, had been followed by the company when they were using “private browsing mode” to access Google Analytics or Ad Manager without being signed into their Google account.

At the very least, this would have amounted to $5 billion.

In response to a request for comment, neither Google nor the attorneys representing the customers provided an immediate response.

It was claimed in the case that Google’s actions had violated the privacy of its users by “intentionally” misleading them.

The lawsuit was filed in a court in the state of California.

Google and its workers were accused of having been given the “power to learn intimate details about individuals’ lives, interests, and internet usage,” according to the initial complaint.

As an additional point of interest, the report stated that “Google has made itself an unaccountable trove of information that is so detailed and expansive that George Orwell could never believe it.”

The parties did not provide any specific amount for the preliminary settlement that they reached.

A formal settlement is anticipated to be approved by the court on the 24th of February in the year 2024.