Google is under fire for information allegedly collected from users in incognito mode.
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Google has not been able to deny the lawsuit that it collects users’ data on Internet activities, even when browsing in a browser’s private incognito mode. The lawsuit, submitted in June, alleges that Google violates infringement and privacy laws by continuing to ‘intercept, track and collect communications’, even when people use Chrome’s incognito mode and other private browser modes.
A federal judge on Friday rejected the technical giant’s request for dismissal of the lawsuit, which seeks the status of class action.
“The court concludes that Google did not notify users that Google was involved in the alleged data collection while the user was in private browsing mode,” U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh said in San Jose, California. wrote her verdict.
The ruling comes amid ongoing research into technology giants like Google and Facebook how much data businesses have collected from consumers. Google said last year that it would phase out third-party cookies that individuals browsing websites monitor and target ads to based on their activity.
The lawsuit, which claims at least $ 5 billion from Google and its parent company, Alphabet, alleges that the company secretly collects data through Google Analytics, Google Ad Manager, website plug-ins and other applications, including mobile applications.
Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but said earlier that it disputes the claims, adding that each time users open a new incognito tab, they are notified that websites may have information about their browsing activity during your session.