SAN FRANCISCO (Diya TV) — A federal jury has ordered Google to pay $425.7 million in damages after finding the tech giant illegally tracked users’ smartphones for nearly a decade. The decision came Wednesday in a San Francisco courtroom after a two-week trial in a class-action lawsuit that involved about 98 million devices in the United States.
The jury ruled that Google violated California privacy laws by snooping on smartphone activity between July 1, 2016, and Sept. 23, 2024. The payout works out to about $4 per device.
Google denied the accusations during the trial. The company argued it did not track people who had switched off personalization settings on their devices. Google claimed its privacy tools give users full control of their data.
“This decision misunderstands how our products work, and we will appeal it,” Google spokesman Jose Castaneda said Thursday.
But the eight-person jury sided with the plaintiffs. It concluded that Google used data collected without consent to boost ad sales and increase revenue.
Attorneys who brought the case argued Google built its multibillion-dollar ad business on information it secretly gathered from smartphones. They said the company sold ads based on users’ online activity without their knowledge or permission.
The legal team pushed for more than $30 billion in damages, framing the practice as illegal profiteering. While the jury awarded far less, the plaintiffs still called the ruling an important win for privacy rights.
“We hope this result sends a message to the tech industry that Americans will not sit idly by as their information is collected and monetized against their will,” said attorney John Yanchunis of Morgan & Morgan.
The ruling adds to growing concerns about how major tech companies handle personal data. Google’s business model relies heavily on digital advertising, and user data plays a key role in targeting ads. Critics say the case highlights how tech firms continue to test the limits of privacy laws.
Although the payout is small compared to Google’s massive revenue, the verdict could encourage more lawsuits over data collection practices. Legal experts say the case may also pressure lawmakers to strengthen privacy protections at the state and federal levels.
The verdict came just one day after another major legal decision against Google. In Washington, D.C., a federal judge ruled that Google operates its search engine as an illegal monopoly. The U.S. Department of Justice had sought to break up the company, but the judge stopped short of ordering that step.
Instead, the ruling requires Google to share some of its search data with rivals. While that case focused on competition and market power, the San Francisco trial centered on personal privacy. Together, the back-to-back decisions show the mounting legal challenges facing one of the world’s most powerful technology companies.
Google plans to appeal the privacy verdict, which means the case could continue for years in higher courts. In the meantime, consumer advocates say the decision serves as a warning to other companies that collect and profit from user data.
For smartphone users, the trial shines a spotlight on how much information tech companies gather even when privacy settings are enabled. The outcome may push more people to demand stronger controls over their digital lives.
The class-action suit covered almost a decade of data tracking, making it one of the largest privacy cases against a tech company in U.S. history. Even though the jury awarded only a fraction of the damages sought, the ruling shows that courts are willing to hold companies accountable for privacy violations.
