Google Chrome is the most famous and popular browser in the world. A kind of certainty for those who access the Internet. In recent days, however, he has also been at the center of a fairly troublesome lawsuit. Because it is about user privacy. A judge, in fact, ruled that Big G should go to trial after some citizens filed a complaint due to the fact that the browser is able to track users even while they use the famous incognito mode.
The class action against Google
This is a class action lawsuit filed in the United States in June 2020, which today has turned into a full-fledged indictment. Google Chrome would allow websites to collect personal information about users despite the incognito mode. According to the indictment, “Google knows who your friends are, what your hobbies are, what you like to eat, what movies you watch, where and when you like to shop, what are your favorite vacation destinations, what is yours. favorite color and also the most intimate and potentially embarrassing things you browse the Internet, regardless of whether you follow Google’s advice to keep your activities private. ‘ In the face of this, damages are required in the amount of at least $ 5 billion (about $ 5,000 per affected user). According to Bloomberg reports, Lucy Koh, federal judge of the San Jose District Court, has denied the filing requested by Alphabet, establishing that “Google has not informed users that the company collects data while the user is in private browsing mode”. And this cause, now, risks creating a very important precedent, with potential repercussions also in Europe.
Loading…
How Google Chrome works
It is fair to point out that Google Chrome’s incognito mode was never designed to make a user “invisible” to the Web. Chrome itself does this to the user when he opens a window in this mode. The message is as follows: «You can now browse privately. Other people using this device won’t see your activities, but your downloads and favorites will be saved. Chrome will not save the following information: browsing history, cookies and site data, information entered in forms ». But then again: «your business could still be visible: to the websites you visit, to your employer or your school, to your Internet service provider». In short, questions of goat wool. This warning appears on Chrome for Windows, macOS, Android, iOS and Linux, all platforms that support the browser. A Google spokesperson said the company will “strongly defend” in this lawsuit “as we clearly state every time that you open a new incognito tab, websites may be able to collect information about your browsing activity during the session “. And in fact, Chrome incognito is for the sole purpose of allowing users to browse the Internet without the activity being saved to the device natively. In short, it could be a case with little sense. But in the meantime it will be a judge to decide.