Search engine giants, Google is making moves to destroy “billions of data points” it improperly collected from Chrome’s Incognito mode—a move that was part of a settlement reached last December in a $5 billion privacy lawsuit.
Google will also update its data collection disclaimers and keep an option in place that prevents Chrome’s third-party cookies by default for the following five years after erasing the data points.
The 2020 class-action complaint accused Google of deceiving Chrome users about how private Incognito browsing actually is, in relation to the browser’s surveillance of Incognito users.
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The lawsuit further stated that Google misled customers into believing their information was private, all the while tracking their activities. However, Google later countered these claims, saying it alerted Chrome users to the fact that using Incognito mode “does not mean ‘invisible,’” and that it (Google) may still view their behavior.
According to reports, the trial for the lawsuit was first set for February. Before the settlement becomes official, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers of the Northern District of California must give her final approval.
“This settlement is a historic step in requiring honesty and accountability from dominant technology companies,” Attorney David Boies, who represents the plaintiffs, said in a statement.
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