UK Safari Users Now Able To Sue Google Over Cookies

Safari users in the UK have won the right to sue Google. The judgement, which potentially paves the way for a series of lawsuits, comes about as the result of the Court of Appeals, where Google was fighting the case being heard at all. a group of users claim Google was bypassing Apple's privacy settings for Safari and installing 'cookies' meant to track their Internet activity. While plaintiffs applaud the ruling, Google is "disappointed with the court's decision."

Safari, which is only available to Apple devices, was allegedly gamed by Google to allow for cookies to be placed, which record your Internet activity, often for the use of advertising. Google makes the lion's share of their revenue from selling ad space online.

While Google was dismissive of the merits of the lawsuit, the Court of Appeals took a different approach:

These claims raise serious issues which merit a trial. They concern what is alleged to have been the secret and blanket tracking and collation of information, often of an extremely private nature... about and associated with the claimants' internet use, and the subsequent use of that information for about nine months. The case relates to the anxiety and distress this intrusion upon autonomy has caused.

According to an attorney representing the claimants, Dan trench, Google "argued that no harm was done because the matter was trivial as consumers had not lost out financially."

Google was fined by the FTC for the very same thing in 2012.

Source: BBC