Google pays $155 million in settlements for tracking users' locations

Baghdad-INA

Google has agreed to pay $155 million to settle two claims from California and private plaintiffs that the search engine company misled users about how it tracked their locations and used their data without their consent.

The settlements resolve two allegations that the Alphabet subsidiary deceived people into believing they controlled how Google collected and used their personal data.

The company was accused of being able to "profile" individuals, target them with ads even if they turned off their location history feature, and deceive individuals about their ability to block ads they don't want.

“Google was telling its users one thing... that it would not track their locations once they chose not to do so... but it was doing the opposite and continuing to track its users’ movements for commercial profit,” California Attorney General Rob Ranta said in a statement. "This is unacceptable," he added.

The California settlement requires Google to pay $93 million and disclose more information about how it tracks the existence of people and uses the data it collects.

Money from Google's $62 million settlement to private parties, after deducting legal fees, will go to court-approved nonprofit groups that track online privacy concerns.