In the latest development in the global crackdown on big tech, regulators in Australia have filed a lawsuit against Alphabet Inc's Google for alleged misuse of location data. The suit claims that Google had misled its users in terms of how it had collected and used their location data.
The new lawsuit against Google was filed by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC). The regulator explained in its filing that Google had missed telling its Android operating system users that they had to switch off two settings on their phones to prevent the company from storing their information. The suit claims that Google had collected information without user consent in this manner for almost two years.
In its Federal Court filing on Tuesday, the ACCC stated that Google's missed to properly inform users on how to opt-out of the data collection. Most users who were informed that there was just one set to switch off had thought that their location data was not being stored. However, this was not the case as Google continued to keep user information. Not providing clear instructions deprived users of making an informed choice regarding their data.
The suit against Google is reportedly seeking the payment of an unspecified fine along with an order for the company to issue corrective notices to the public. ACCC Chair rod Sims also stated that they want Google to make a formal declaration that misleading data collection practices will not continue.
In response to the suit, Google stated that it would be defending itself in the matter. The company did not elaborate further on its plans as it still had to review the ACCC's allegations against it. Google did mention that it will continue to engage with the regulator to gather more details.
Apart from its filed complaint against Google, the ACCC mentioned that it will be pursuing cases against other global tech companies. This will include social media firms such as Facebook, which had recently become the center of global concern over its privacy and content-sharing practices.
The bulk of the fighting against big tech is currently being fought in Europe and the United States. The European Union's recently enacted General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) rules have already resulted in several successful suits against big tech firms.
Earlier in the year, Google was forced to pay a $55.5 million fine to French regulators for its breach of the new privacy law. Facebook also faced a similar complaint in July in the United States, resulting in it paying a record-breaking $5 billion fine over its involvement in the utilization of user data in the 2016 US presidential elections.
