Settlement Reached Over Alleged Secret Recordings
Google has agreed to pay $68 million (£51 million) to settle a lawsuit alleging that it secretly listened to users’ private conversations through their phones.
Users accused Google Assistant, a virtual assistant available on many Android devices, of recording private conversations after being inadvertently triggered. The lawsuit claimed these recordings were later shared with advertisers to enable targeted advertising.
In court filings seeking to settle the case, Google denied wrongdoing and said it was pursuing settlement to avoid prolonged litigation.
How Google Assistant Is Supposed To Work
Google Assistant is designed to remain in standby mode until it detects an activation phrase, typically “Hey Google.” Once activated, the device records audio and sends it to Google’s servers for processing.
Users rely on the assistant for tasks ranging from weather updates to controlling smart home devices like lights and televisions. Google has said that audio is not transmitted while the assistant remains in standby mode.
Claims Of Accidental Activation And Data Use
The lawsuit alleged that Google Assistant sometimes activated unintentionally, mistakenly interpreting background speech as its wake phrase. In those instances, the phone allegedly recorded conversations that users believed to be private.
Plaintiffs further claimed that these recordings were sent to advertisers and used to help create targeted advertising profiles.
Settlement Details And Class Action Status
The proposed settlement was filed on Friday in a California federal court and still requires approval from US District Judge Beth Labson Freeman.
The case was brought as a class action, meaning any payout would be distributed among a large group of affected users rather than a single plaintiff. Those eligible include people who owned Google devices dating back to May 2016.
Attorneys representing the plaintiffs may seek up to one-third of the settlement, roughly $22 million, to cover legal fees.
Part Of A Broader Industry Pattern
The settlement follows a similar case earlier this year involving Apple, which agreed in January to pay $95 million to settle allegations that its voice assistant, Siri, recorded users without their consent.
Apple also denied wrongdoing, as well as claims that it improperly recorded, shared, or failed to delete conversations captured through Siri activations.
Featured image credits: Wikimedia Commons
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