Google is paying the US state of Arizona $85 million to settle claims that the tech giant illegally tracked the location of Android users. As The Verge reports, the settlement is the largest ever payout (per capita) by Google in a consumer fraud lawsuit.
Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich sued Google in May 2020, claiming that “dark patterns” were created in its software on Android smartphones and apps.
According to the lawsuit, even after users turn off location sharing, Google keeps location tracking on in the background to collect advertising data.
A company spokesperson said the issue was based on old product policies, which have been updated.
A company spokesperson said, “We provide direct controls and auto delete options for location data and are always working to minimize the amount of data we collect. We are delighted to resolve this matter.” “
The lawsuit was filed on a 2020 complaint filed by the Arizona Attorney General over location data collection.
Google had said that all smartphones use location data – an integral part of the way they work.
Two years ago, Google updated its data retention practices.
