Google Ordered to Pay $425 Million for Secretly Tracking Users

After years of denying it was spying on Americans, Google just got hit with a staggering $425.7 million penalty for doing exactly that. A federal jury in San Francisco found the tech giant guilty of invading the privacy of nearly 100 million users, despite those individuals having turned off a key tracking feature in their accounts.

This class-action case covered users between July 1, 2016, and September 23, 2024 spanning eight full years of unauthorized data collection. The jury ruled that Google violated California privacy laws, essentially spying on Americans who explicitly tried to opt out of being tracked.

Here’s what you need to know:

• The case involved 98 million users whose data was collected even after they disabled Google's tracking feature.

• Google claimed the data collected was “nonpersonal” and “pseudonymous,” though it never explained how users were supposed to know that.

• The jury didn’t buy it and neither should you.

A Google spokesperson fired back, claiming the verdict “misunderstands how our products work.” Translation? They got caught, and now they’re scrambling to rewrite the narrative. The company plans to appeal, as expected, but that won't erase the years of covert surveillance millions were unknowingly subjected to.

This isn’t Google's first privacy scandal and it won’t be the last.

• Earlier this year, Google agreed to a $1.4 billion settlement with Texas over separate violations of the state’s privacy laws.

• In another 2023 case, the company was forced to destroy billions of data records after being caught tracking users in so-called “Incognito” mode, which turned out to be anything but private.

These massive payouts prove one thing: Big Tech has been abusing its power for years, and the American people are finally waking up to it. Silicon Valley elites like those at Google operate under the belief that they’re too big to be held accountable until a jury reminds them otherwise.

Privacy isn’t a privilege it’s a right. And when companies ignore that, they need to pay.

If you’re tired of being tracked, monetized, and lied to, share this article or subscribe to our newsletter for updates that the mainstream media would rather you didn’t see.