Australian A court in a landmark ruling today ruled that Google violated the law on the collection of tracking data by misleading Android users on mobile devices.
The American technology giant may pay fines amounting to “many millions” of dollars under The Australian Competition and Consumption Commission (ACCC) has brought the case to justice, said Rod Sims, its director.
According to AMPE, the federal court ruled that in 2017 and 2018, Google misled some phone and tablet users who had installed the Android operating system collecting their tracking information even after choosing not to share the “tracking history” data.
The court mainly ruled that Google had clarified that by allowing the continuation of “Web & App Activity” within a separate parameter on their devices, it included the tracking data.
Numerous studies conducted in various parts of the world have shown that the collection of tracking data from Android and iPhone devices is done without the knowledge of users or without their explicit consent.
Such data is especially valuable for advertisers who offer products and services depending on the region.
For Sims, this is the first such decision in the world.
“It’s a huge victory for consumers, especially for all those who are worried about their privacy online, because the court ruling sends a strong message to Google and to other companies: large companies should not mislead their customers, “he said.
In his decision, Federal Court Judge Thomas Towley “partially” accepted the ACCC’s action against Google, noting that the “behavior of the company did not mislead all users” of its service.
The judge clarified, however, that Google “Misled or could mislead certain usersAnd that “the number or proportion of users who have been misled or could have been misled does not matter” in order to determine the infringement.
The ACCC expects the fines to be $ 850,000 (€ 710,000) per violation, for a total of “several million” dollars, Sims told ABC television.
For its part, Google protested the decision, which it said rejected some “general requirements” of the ACCC and only concerned certain users, and said it was considering an appeal.
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