Consumers Launch Landmark Legal Case Against Google Snooping

AsiaNet 51952

LONDON, Jan. 27/ PRN=KYODO JBN/--

    A group of internet users has launched a landmark privacy case against

Google for undermining the security settings on Apple's Safari browser to track

online usage covertly.

    In the first case of its kind in the UK, a number of people with concerns

about Google's behaviour have decided to take action and are forming a

campaigning group called Safari Users Against Google's Secret Tracking.

    They have instructed the law firm, Olswang, to coordinate the claims and

are marking Data Privacy Day tomorrow (Jan 28) by launching a Facebook page to

provide information to the many other people who might also have been affected.

The Facebook page can be found at

http://www.facebook.com/SafariUsersAgainstGooglesSecretTracking

    The claims centre around tracking cookies, which had been secretly

installed by Google on the computers and mobile devices of people using Apple's

Safari internet browser.

    The first claimant to issue proceedings, 74-year-old Judith Vidal-Hall,

said: "Google claims it does not collect personal data but doesn't say who

decides what information is 'personal'. Whether something is private or not

should be up to the internet surfer, not Google. We are best placed to decide,

not them."

    Through its DoubleClick adverts, Google designed a code to circumvent

privacy settings in order to deposit the cookies on computers in order to

provide user-targeted advertising. The claimants thought that cookies were

being blocked on their devices because of Safari's strict default privacy

settings and separate assurances being given by Google at the time. This was

not the case.

    The practice was only stopped when an academic researcher noticed Google's

activity and published an expose in the United States. Google was subsequently

found to be in violation of an existing order from the US Federal Trade

Commission and was fined a record $22.5million.

    Olswang say that this action breached their clients' confidence and privacy

and are now seeking damages, disclosure and an apology from the company.

    Dan Tench, a Partner at Olswang, said: "Google has a responsibility to

consumers and should be accountable for the trust placed in them. We hope that

they will take this opportunity to give Safari users a proper explanation about

what happened, to apologise and, where appropriate, compensate the victims of

their intrusion."

    For information on joining the claim, email daniel.tench@olswang.com

    Media enquiries: Olswang Press Office on +44(0)20-7067-3046.

    Source: Olswang LLP