Google has agreed to settle a lawsuit accusing it of tracking Chrome users’ activities even when they were using Incognito mode. The lawsuit, which sought $5 billion in damages, was filed in 2020. According to Reuters and The Washington Post, details of the settlement have not been made public, but the terms have been agreed upon and will be presented to the court for approval in February.
The plaintiffs argued that Google used tools like its Analytics product, apps, and plug-ins to monitor users. They claimed that by tracking activity in Incognito mode, Google was falsely giving users the impression that they could control their shared information. Google retorted that while Incognito mode doesn’t save a user’s activity on their device, websites could still collect information during the session.
The lawsuit presented internal emails supposedly demonstrating conversations between Google executives about monitoring Incognito browser usage to sell ads and track web traffic. The claim alleged Google violated federal wire-tapping and California privacy laws and sought up to $5,000 per affected user. They estimated that millions of people who’d used Incognito mode since 2016 could have been affected. The settlement amount is likely lower than $5 billion, but specific details remain undisclosed.
