Privacy of data. Google agrees to pay $392 million to 40 US states

Google has struck a deal with 40 US states, agreeing to pay them $391.5 million to end investigations into how the search engine collects user data. According to a press release from the New Jersey Attorney General, it is the largest personal information protection settlement ever reached in the United States.

According to a coalition of states leading the investigation, the Internet giant violated consumers’ privacy rights by collecting geographic data without their permission to target ads. “In line with improvements we’ve made in recent years, we ended this investigation based on outdated regulations that we changed years ago.A Google spokesperson contacted by AFP said.

Clearer directions

“Google cannot pretend to give users the tools to control their personal data, then ignore these opportunities to collect and sell data to advertisers against Internet users’ express requests.New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said in a press release. “When platforms violate consumers’ privacy rights, they put them at risk“, he insists.

Under the terms of the agreement, Google must specify more clearly what geographic data is collected, including when a feature is turned off on one service but not on others (search engine, apps like Google Maps, etc.).

Unlike the European Union, the United States does not have a federal law on personal data protection. Some states, such as California or Colorado, have adopted similar texts. Google, like its neighbors in Silicon Valley, has been repeatedly criticized for its business model, which consists of selling finely targeted advertising space on a very large scale and therefore depends on the data the group collects from Internet users as they browse online. : their use of free apps.