The lawsuit seeks at least $5 billion, accusing the Alphabet Inc unit of surreptitiously collecting information about what people view online and where they browse, despite their using what Google calls Incognito mode.
According to the complaint filed in the federal court in San Jose, California, Google gathers data through Google Analytics, Google Ad Manager and other applications and website plug-ins, including smartphone apps, regardless of whether users click on Google-supported ads.
This helps Google learn about users’ friends, hobbies, favorite foods, shopping habits, and even the “most intimate and potentially embarrassing things” they search for online, the complaint said.
So what does Google have to say about this?
Jose Castaneda, a Google spokesman, said the Mountain View, California-based company will defend itself vigorously against the claims.
“As we clearly state each time you open a new incognito tab, websites might be able to collect information about your browsing activity,” he said.
Really?
When you open a new incognito tab, Chrome tells you:
Now you can browse privately, and other people who use this device won’t see your activity.
[…]
Your activity might still be visible to:
Websites you visit
Your employer or school
Your internet service providerNot deceptive at all.
Users should be told that they are tracked by Google even in Incognito mode.
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