Google agrees to pay up in 12 year class-action lawsuit

The settlement would bring an end to a privacy-focused consumer class action lawsuit in California

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Consumers in a 12-year-long class action lawsuit against Google say that Google shared their queries with third parties without their permission.

What happened. The lawsuit alleged that Google violated both the Stored Communications Act, a federal law that governs access to records held by internet service providers, and state laws in California.

The settlement. Details of the settlement can be found here. In addition to the $23 million payout, which still needs court approval, it also requires Google to provide added disclosures to consumers about the sharing of search terms.

Dig deeper. Read the full announcement from Bloomberg.

Why we care. We’re not sure how or if this will affect advertisers in the future. But privacy issues are still a hot topic as we move into 2023.


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About the author

Nicole Farley
Contributor
Nicole Farley is the founder of Web Sprout, an inbound marketing agency. She formerly was PPC Editor for Search Engine Land (from 2022-2023), covering paid search, paid social, Google Analytics and more. In addition to being a Marine Corps veteran, she has an extensive background in digital marketing, an MBA and a penchant for true crime, podcasts, travel, and snacks.

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