Lawsuit takes aim at Google for constant location history tracking
A man from San Diego has launched a class action suit versus Google over the recent discovery that the company's iOS and Android apps continue to track a user's location even if Location History is disabled, calling the unwanted tracking a breach of the user's privacy.
The lawsuit from Napoleon Patacsil, filed for himself and "on behalf of other persons similarly situated," latches on to the recent revelation that Google's services monitor a user's location constantly, including when users attempt to disable it. Filed to the U.S. District Court of San Francisco on Friday, the suit alleges that Google misrepresents the option to disable the tracking, and in turn works against the privacy of consumers in general.
A report from earlier in August confirmed the location of a smartphone or tablet will still be tracked even if a Location History setting is disabled. To fully disable it, users need to also turn off another setting for Web and App Activity, but this is unclear to most users who assume Google will honor the Location History setting as intended.
Apps like Google Maps need location access for some functionality, such as real-time navigation, while other apps may require the data for other reasons, such as targeted advertising or search results. Many of Google's apps, both on iOS and Android, report back location data to the company's servers.
A few days after the investigation was published, Google updated its support documents to better explain the Location History feature, effectively confirming the continued collection of location data. The new language for the setting explains it will not affect other location services on the user's device, while also warning some location data may continue to be saved.
The lawsuit accuses Google of violating the California Invasion of Privacy Act and California's Constitutional Right to Privacy, as well as an unlawful intrusion upon seclusion. "Google affirmatively - and misleadingly - represented to both Android and Apple device users that turning off Location History would result in Google ceasing to track, record, and use an individual's location information," the suit claims.
Calling the intrusions "highly offensive to a reasonable person," the suit goes on to suggest Google's principal goal was to "surreptitiously monitor Plaintiff and Class members and to allow third-parties to do the same."
The suit also references the recognition of the Supreme Court in 2018 that location data is highly sensitive data, noting a comment from Chief Justice John Roberts suggesting a phone "achieves near perfect surveillance, as if it had attached an ankle monitor to the phone user."
The lawsuit is seeking class-action status, with the inclusion of separate "Android" and "iPhone" classes, with each representing "all natural persons residing in the United States" owning each device, and found their data was recorded even after turning off Location History.
The lawsuit from Napoleon Patacsil, filed for himself and "on behalf of other persons similarly situated," latches on to the recent revelation that Google's services monitor a user's location constantly, including when users attempt to disable it. Filed to the U.S. District Court of San Francisco on Friday, the suit alleges that Google misrepresents the option to disable the tracking, and in turn works against the privacy of consumers in general.
A report from earlier in August confirmed the location of a smartphone or tablet will still be tracked even if a Location History setting is disabled. To fully disable it, users need to also turn off another setting for Web and App Activity, but this is unclear to most users who assume Google will honor the Location History setting as intended.
Apps like Google Maps need location access for some functionality, such as real-time navigation, while other apps may require the data for other reasons, such as targeted advertising or search results. Many of Google's apps, both on iOS and Android, report back location data to the company's servers.
A few days after the investigation was published, Google updated its support documents to better explain the Location History feature, effectively confirming the continued collection of location data. The new language for the setting explains it will not affect other location services on the user's device, while also warning some location data may continue to be saved.
The lawsuit accuses Google of violating the California Invasion of Privacy Act and California's Constitutional Right to Privacy, as well as an unlawful intrusion upon seclusion. "Google affirmatively - and misleadingly - represented to both Android and Apple device users that turning off Location History would result in Google ceasing to track, record, and use an individual's location information," the suit claims.
Calling the intrusions "highly offensive to a reasonable person," the suit goes on to suggest Google's principal goal was to "surreptitiously monitor Plaintiff and Class members and to allow third-parties to do the same."
The suit also references the recognition of the Supreme Court in 2018 that location data is highly sensitive data, noting a comment from Chief Justice John Roberts suggesting a phone "achieves near perfect surveillance, as if it had attached an ankle monitor to the phone user."
The lawsuit is seeking class-action status, with the inclusion of separate "Android" and "iPhone" classes, with each representing "all natural persons residing in the United States" owning each device, and found their data was recorded even after turning off Location History.
Comments
Don't worry. Vestager always take her time, but it always hurt!
I just hope Google gets a bigger target on its back than Apple soon, I don't own any Alphabet stock. haha.
https://forums.appleinsider.com/discussion/comment/3084089/#Comment_3084089
"You assume someone would want to turn off location services only to prevent ad targeting based in part on location data. Some here have a "fear of authorities", or "fear of an ex" or "fear they'll be found someplace they shouldn't be", rational or not, and simply want to avoid ALL location logging. In general Apple doesn't make that any easier than Google does it?
Yes. "what they do" with data does matter. Google uses location to deliver more relevant ads (for that matter so does Apple on a lesser scale but that's not what we're discussing). In general Apple does so to "improve their services".
The fact that a user toggling an iOS "Location Services" master switch to "OFF" with the expectation that off means off also matters doesn't it? That you and others in the discussion wouldn't want to acknowledge that is understandable, tho plainly disingenuous. I'm honest enough to come out and plainly state that IMO it's misleading if not outright deceptive in Google's case to do so. Are you honest enough to admit IF Apple's "Location Services" master "OFF" setting doesn't mean location tracking is completely off for everything it might also be "misleading if not outright deceptive"?
If the headline instead read:
Apple tracks users even when 'Location Services' is disabled
would it still be accurate?"And if you're not aware of what I'm referring to when talking about misleading user settings see this post:
https://forums.appleinsider.com/discussion/comment/3084058/#Comment_3084058
If you and others are truly desiring a discussion about the problem itself rather than a relatively thoughtless bash opportunity then have it. I'll even chime in. Otherwise it serves no benefit for me to keep saying "yeah Google was wrong" if no one is honestly interested in the why's, or simply willing to be honest period. Some of our most vociferous members can be so disingenuous at times and make it frustratingly difficult to have an honest thread.
Apple says you can:
"disable Location Services at any time. To do so, open Settings on your iPhone, tap Privacy, tap Location Services, and either turn off the global Location Services switch or turn off the individual location switch of each location-aware app or feature by setting it to “Never”.
So is that true? Does it really turn off all location logging from then on or like Google there's actually other settings to REALLY turn everything off?