Google is being sued in the US over accusations it deceived people about how to control location tracking.<\/p>\n
The legal action refers to a widely reported 2018 revelation turning off one location-tracking setting in its apps was insufficient to fully disable the feature.<\/p>\n
It accuses Google of using so-called dark patterns, marketing techniques that deliberately confuse.<\/p>\n
Google said the claims were inaccurate and outdated.<\/p>\n
\u2018Unfair practices\u2019
\nThe legal action was filed in the District of Columbia. Similar ones were also filed in Texas, Indiana and Washington state.<\/p>\n
It refers to an Associated Press revelation turning off Location History when using Google Maps or Search was insufficient \u2013 as a separate setting, Web and App Activity, continued to log location and other personal data.<\/p>\n
The study, with researchers at Princeton University, found up to two billion Android and Apple devices could be affected.<\/p>\n
\u201cGoogle has relied on, and continues to rely on, deceptive and unfair practices that make it difficult for users to decline location tracking or to evaluate the data collection and processing to which they are purportedly consenting,\u201d the legal action alleges.<\/p>\n
\u2018Robust controls\u2019
\nGoogle told BBC News the case was based \u201con inaccurate claims and outdated assertions about our settings\u201d.<\/p>\n
A representative added: \u201cWe have always built privacy features into our products and provided robust controls for location data.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will vigorously defend ourselves and set the record straight.\u201d<\/p>\n
Visual misdirection
\nThe legal action claims Google\u2019s policies contained other \u201cmisleading, ambiguous and incomplete descriptions\u2026 but guarantee that consumers will not understand when their location is collected and retained by Google or for what purposes\u201d.<\/p>\n
It refers to dark patterns, design choices that alter users\u2019 decision-making for the designer\u2019s benefit \u2013 such as, complicated navigation menus, visual misdirection, confusing wording and repeated nudging towards a particular outcome.<\/p>\n
Data regulators are increasingly focusing on these practices.<\/p>\n
Google faces a raft of other legal actions in the US, including:<\/p>\n
In May 2020, Arizona filed a legal action over the same issue.<\/p>\n
In December 2020, multiple US states sued over the price and process of advertising auctions.<\/p>\n
In October 2020, the US Justice Department alleged Google had a monopoly over search and search advertising<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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