Google Loses Safari Web Tracking Court of Appeal Case

U.K. consumers have been granted the right to take Google to court over revelations from 2012 thatit bypassed security settings in Apple's Safari browser to track users.

The case was brought after Google said that it should not face legal action in the U.K. as no financialharm came to consumers, something it says U.K. law requires for a case to be brought under theData Protection Act.

This argument was dismissed in January 2014 but Google immediately took the case to the Court ofAppeal.

However, the courts have once again ruled that Google can be challenged in the U.K. courts,claiming that the seriousness of the allegations "merit a trial."

Related articles

"They concern what is alleged to have been the secret and blanket tracking and collation ofinformation, often of an extremely private nature, as specified in the confidential schedules, aboutand associated with the claimants' Internet use, and the subsequent use of that information forabout nine months," the judgement read.

SEW's sister publication V3 contacted Google for comment on the decision but had not received aresponse at the time of publication.

One of the claimants, Judith Vidal-Hall, called the decision a "David and Goliath victory" that gavepower back to the people against giant corporations.

"The Court of Appeal has ensured that Google cannot use its vast resources to evade Englishjustice," she said.

"Ordinary computer users like me will now have the right to hold this giant to account before thecourts for its unacceptable, immoral, and unjust actions."

Dan Tench, a partner at law firm Olswang, acting for the claimants, said that the decision was vitalas it stops Google "evading or trivializing these very serious intrusions into the privacy of Britishconsumers."

He added, "Google, a company that makes billions from advertising knowledge, claims that it wasunaware that it was secretly tracking Apple users for a period of nine months and had argued thatno harm was done because the matter was trivial as consumers had not lost out financially.

"The Court of Appeal saw these arguments for what they are: a breach of consumers' civil rights andactionable before the English courts. We look forward to holding Google to account for its actions."

Google was also criticized in the judgement for submitting excessive trial costs.

"The defendant has put forward an estimate for its trial costs of £1.2 million. These figures seem tous to be extremely high, in particular because some of the technical issues in this claim may alreadyhave been addressed by the defendant in other litigation concerning the Safari workaround it hashad to deal with in the U.S.," it said.

The decision means that Google faces the possibility of paying out vast sums to consumers, havingalready paid fines and settlements totaling around $40 million in the U.S.

Jonathan Hawker, who set up the Google Action Group regarding the Safari tracking issue, said thatanyone who used an Apple iPhone, iPod, or iPad between summer 2011 and spring 2012 could beentitled to compensation and should come forward.

"Anyone who used the Safari browser during the relevant period now has the right to join our claimagainst Google. We urge all Safari users to join us in this battle to hold Google to account for itsactions in the only way it understands," he said.

http://searchenginewatch.com/sew/news/2401893/google-loses-safari-web-tracking-court-of-appeal-case