Posted on October 26, 2018 at 3:29 PM
Facebook and Google Sued for Secretly Monitoring User Location
Despite the recent controversies regarding Facebook, its security, and the way that the company handles users’ private information, the social platform finds itself in another difficult situation. Not only that, but it seems that this time it is not alone.
Google and Facebook facing separate lawsuits for tracking their users
Both Google and Facebook have recently been hit by lawsuits that are accusing both firms of monitoring the location of their users. While there is an option to opt out and switch the tracking off, it seems that this might not protect users as much as they might think. The new lawsuits indicate that these companies continued to track their customers even after such features were turned off.
Furthermore, everyone who is tracked even after disabling this feature can join the class action lawsuit. This means that millions of users have the potential to back the lawsuit, which might make the fines for Facebook and Google reach billions if the court rules against them.
The lawsuit against Facebook was filed by Brett Heeger in California District Court. Heeger believes that the platform continued to track user location via their mobile devices. Furthermore, Facebook is also being sued for violating the Consent Decree from 2011. With this degree, the company promised not to misuse data or to endanger user’s privacy or information security.
As mentioned, Google is facing a similar suit which was filed by Frederick Davis, Leslie Lee, and Stacy Smedley. The accusations are mostly the same, and Google is also accused of collecting location information ever after the tracking feature is turned off. The lawsuit claims that the company only started displaying the information to the user, misinforming them and thicking them into thinking that they are not being tracked.
The lawsuits claim that both companies have violated Californian laws, including the Constitutional Right of Privacy, as well as the Invasion of Privacy Act, and the Consumers Legal Remedies Act. Furthermore, Google is also accused of violating Colorado’s Consumer Protection Act, and Unfair Competition Law. As for Facebook, the social media giant supposedly also violated the Federal Stored Communications Act.
Another thing that ties the lawsuits is that they demand to receive an explanation from the companies regarding the decision to track users. Also, the plaintiffs demand that the collected data is destroyed, as well as a promise not to repeat the violation. In addition, the lawsuit against Google further demands that the firm gives up the profit earned from the collected data.
