Google Fined Over $314 Million For Collecting Data From Android Phones Without Permission
A class action suit was filed by the plaintiff in 2019 on behalf of an estimated 14 million Android phone users in California.
Tech giant Google has been ordered to pay a fine of more than $314 million by a United States court for unauthorised collection of data from idle Android phones.
A California jury on Tuesday ruled that Google is liable to pay over $314.6-million fine for collecting data without the consent of the Android phone users. Hearing a class action suit, the San Jose-based jury noted that Google has misused customers' cell phone data and must pay the fine, Reuters reported.
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A class action suit was filed by the plaintiff in 2019 on behalf of an estimated 14 million Android phone users in California, who accused Google of collecting their data from idle devices without consent.
The jury agreed with the plaintiffs that Alphabet's Google was liable for sending and receiving information from the devices without permission while they were idle. The lawsuit filed by the impacted users described the incident as "unavoidable burdens shouldered by Android device users for Google's benefit", the Reuters report added.
According to the plaintiffs, Google collected the data from idle Android phones and it was used for targeted advertising and other company purposes. The plaintiffs' lawyer, Glen Summers, said that the verdict clearly shows the case had strong merit, as per the report.
In its defence, Google argued that no one was harmed and that users had agreed to the data collection while accepting its policies. According to Google, its terms of service clarified about the “passive” data transfers. However, the court disagreed and sided with the plaintiffs, ordering Google to pay the fine, it said.
The tech giant has said that it plans to appeal the verdict. Google spokesperson, Jose Castaneda, was quoted by Reuters as saying that the verdict "misunderstands services that are critical to the security, performance and reliability of Android devices.”
A separate but similar case has been filed by a different group against Google in the San Jose federal court. The case covers Android users in the other 49 states of the US and has been set for hearing in April 2026.
The verdict in this San Jose case could set a precedent for future lawsuits.
