Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich sued Google in May 2020, claiming that “dark patterns” (design techniques that may manipulate consumer conduct) have been constructed into its software program on Android telephones and apps. The swimsuit argued that Google saved location monitoring working within the background to gather promoting knowledge, even after customers had turned off location sharing, and made privateness settings to maintain location data non-public needlessly troublesome to seek out. This follows a 2018 report from The Associated Press that discovered Google tracks customers via companies like Google maps, climate updates, and browser searches, even with Location History switched off.

As Bloomberg reports, this settlement is without doubt one of the largest ever paid by Google per capita in a client fraud lawsuit. “When I was elected attorney general, I promised Arizonans I would fight for them and hold everyone, including corporations like Google, accountable,” Brnovich mentioned in a press release. “I am proud of this historic settlement that proves no entity, not even big tech companies, is above the law.”

Google spokesperson José Castañeda claimed that the case was based mostly on outdated product insurance policies which have lengthy since been up to date. “We provide straightforward controls and auto delete options for location data, and are always working to minimize the data we collect,” Castañeda mentioned. “We are pleased to have this matter resolved and will continue to focus our attention on providing useful products for our users.”