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Browsing histories allegedly intercepted without consent

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Google said its disclosures were adequate

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August trial scheduled

By Jonathan Stempel

Jan 8 (Reuters) - Google failed to persuade a federal

judge to dismiss a privacy class action claiming it collected

personal data from people's cellphones after they switched off a

button to stop the tracking, paving the way for a possible

August trial.

Chief Judge Richard Seeborg of the federal court in San

Francisco rejected arguments that the search engine company

adequately disclosed how its Web & App Activity settings worked,

and that users consented to the tracking.

Google had also argued that its basic record-keeping

"doesn't hurt anyone."

Users of Android and non-Android mobile devices accused

Google of invading their privacy and violating a California law

against unauthorized fraudulent computer access by intercepting

and saving their personal browsing histories without consent.

In a 20-page decision on Tuesday, Seeborg said reasonable

users could view Google's conduct as "highly offensive," because

the company collected data despite fielding concerns from

several employees and knowing its disclosures were ambiguous.

He cited internal communications suggesting that Google, a

unit of Alphabet, was intentionally vague in

distinguishing between data collected inside and outside Google

accounts because users might find the truth "alarming."

On the other hand, Seeborg said the Google employees might

simply have been suggesting ways to improve the Mountain View,

California-based company's products and services.

"Whether Google or plaintiffs' interpretation prevails is a

triable issue of fact," he wrote.

Google and its lawyers did not immediately respond to

requests for comment on Wednesday. Lawyers for the plaintiffs

did not immediately respond to similar requests.

A jury trial is scheduled for Aug. 18. The lawsuit began in

July 2020.

Last August, the federal appeals court in San Francisco

revived a lawsuit accusing Google of tracking Chrome browser

users after they chose not to synchronize their browsers with

their Google accounts.

Four months earlier, Google agreed to destroy billions of

data records to settle a lawsuit claiming it tracked people who

thought they were browsing privately, including on Chrome

browsers set to "Incognito" mode.

Law firms representing the plaintiffs in that case valued

that settlement at more than $5 billion. The same firms

represent the plaintiffs in the current case.

The case is Rodriguez et al v Google LLC, U.S. District

Court, Northern District of California, No. 20-04688.

(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York)