SAN FRANCISCO– Google has agreed to settle a $5 billion privacy lawsuit alleging it spied on people who used the “incognito” mode in its Chrome browser — along with similar “private” modes in other browsers — to access their track internet usage.
The class action lawsuit filed in 2020 alleged that Google misled users into believing that it would not track their internet activity while they were using incognito mode. It argued that Google's advertising technologies and other techniques continued to catalog details of users' site visits and activities, despite their use of so-called 'private' browsing.
Plaintiffs also alleged that Google's activities produced an “inexplicable wealth of information” about users who believed they had taken steps to protect their privacy.
The settlement, reached Thursday, must still be approved by a federal judge. Terms were not disclosed, but the lawsuit initially sought $5 billion on behalf of users; The plaintiffs' attorneys said they expect to submit a final settlement agreement to the court by Feb. 24.
Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the settlement.