In a significant legal twist, Google is once again under fire as a U.S. appeals court has revived a class-action lawsuit brought by Google Chrome users. The plaintiffs accuse the tech giant of collecting their personal information without proper consent, despite their decision not to sync their browsers with their Google accounts.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco overturned a previous dismissal, arguing that the lower court failed to properly consider whether reasonable users would have agreed to Google’s data collection practices. This decision comes in the wake of Google’s settlement last year, in which the company agreed to destroy billions of records amid accusations of tracking users who believed they were browsing privately, including through Chrome’s “Incognito” mode.
Google has responded to the ruling with a firm stance, expressing disagreement and maintaining confidence in its privacy practices. The company emphasized that Chrome Sync, which enables seamless use across devices, includes clear privacy controls.
The revived lawsuit could have wide-reaching implications, covering Chrome users who opted out of syncing since July 27, 2016. The plaintiffs argue that Google violated Chrome’s privacy notice, which assured users that personal information would not be collected unless they enabled the sync feature.
Circuit Judge Milan Smith, writing for the appeals court, highlighted that Google’s general privacy policy was not sufficient to override Chrome’s specific assurances about data collection. The case has now been sent back to U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in Oakland, California, for further proceedings.
As Google faces this renewed legal challenge, the outcome could impact tens of thousands of users who have already filed individual lawsuits in California courts. The legal battle is far from over, with the case now gaining fresh momentum.
This lawsuit is part of the ongoing case, Calhoun et al v Google LLC, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 22-16993.
