Google settles for $1.4 billion in Incognito mode, Location History case

Google, maker of the exquisite Pixel smartphone and the ubiquitous search engine, has agreed to pay almost half a billion dollars to the state of Texas.

The exact sum is $1.375 billion and it's meant to settle a case with the state of Texas over claims that Google violated users' privacy rights. The announcement was made by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and, as expected, Google denies any wrongdoing. The agreement, which is a settlement in principle, resolves two lawsuits that targeted three of Google's products for allegedly breaching Texas consumer protection laws.

Paxton stated that major technology companies are not exempt from the law in Texas. He accused Google of secretly monitoring individuals' locations, personal searches, and even collecting biometric data such as voiceprints and facial features through its services. He emphasized that the state had pushed back against these practices and succeeded.

However, specific terms of the settlement, including how the funds will be allocated, have not been disclosed.



Google confirmed that the settlement addresses claims related to Incognito mode, Location History, and the collection of biometric data. The company did not admit to any wrongdoing. A spokesperson for Google, José Castañeda, said the case involved a range of outdated claims regarding policies that the company has since revised. He added that Google is satisfied to resolve the matter and remains committed to strengthening privacy protections across its services.

The lawsuits, originally filed in 2022 by Paxton, accused Google of collecting sensitive biometric data from Texas users without their consent, including face geometry and voiceprints. The legal action also charged the company with continuing to track users' locations despite settings that suggested otherwise and misleading users about the privacy protections offered by Incognito mode. According to a Google spokesperson, the settlement does not require the company to make changes to its products.

I'm not a conspiracy theorist myself, but this doesn't surprise me a bit.

The case follows a similar settlement involving Meta (the parent company of Facebook and Instagram) which agreed last year to pay $1.4 billion to resolve accusations by Paxton that it unlawfully collected and used facial recognition data.