Google Assistant Privacy Lawsuit Settlement Reached at $68M - USA Herald
Google will pay $68 million to settle a class action lawsuit alleging its Assistant improperly recorded and shared private user conversations.Summary
Google has reached a proposed $68 million settlement to resolve a class action lawsuit accusing its Google Assistant of privacy violations. The lawsuit alleged that the voice-activated assistant unlawfully recorded and shared private conversations after being falsely activated by background noise or misinterpreted speech – known as “false accepts.” Plaintiffs claimed these recordings were used to target advertising to users without their knowledge. The settlement, filed in federal court in San Jose, California, requires approval from U.S. District Judge Beth Labson Freeman. Google Assistant is designed to respond to trigger phrases like “Hey Google” or “Okay Google,” but users argued the technology frequently misinterpreted ambient sounds as activation commands, leading to unwanted recording and privacy breaches. The plaintiffs felt this made the assistant feel intrusive, as ads appeared reflecting private conversations.
(Source：USA Herald)