Google to pay $1.375 billion in privacy breach case

Google has agreed to pay the state of Texas an impressive $1.375 billion to settle a lawsuit over violations of users’ privacy rights. The announcement was made by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

According to the announcement, the case involved three Google products: incognito mode, location history and biometric data collection. The company was accused of continuing to track users even when geolocation settings were turned off and collecting facial geometry and voice print data without users’ consent.

According to the statement, Google was accused of continuing to track users even when geolocation settings were turned off and collecting facial geometry and voice print data without users’ consent.

Google spokesman Jose Castaneda said the claims relate to outdated practices that have since been changed. The company did not admit fault, but agreed to a settlement and emphasized its commitment to improving data protection.

The company did not admit guilt, but agreed to a settlement and emphasized its commitment to improving data protection.

The settlement doesn’t require Google to make changes to its services. Nevertheless, the case was another example of the authorities putting pressure on the tech giants. Previously, Meta* also agreed to pay $1.4 billion in a similar case involving the illegal collection of biometric data.

Attorney General Paxton noted that even large tech companies are required to comply with Texas state laws. He said Google “secretly tracked location, personal queries, and collected biometrics” from users, but now Texas has been able to get justice.

* Owned by Meta, it is recognized as an extremist organization in Russia and its activities are banned.

The Google to pay $1.375 billion in privacy breach case was first published at ITZine.ru.