Star Online Report
A campaigning group called ‘’Google You Owe Us” is suing Google on behalf of 5.4 million people over allegations that the company have planted secret cookies and harvested personal information from iPhone users.
“Google You Owe US”, led by Richard Lloyd, claims that Google have illegally collected personal data from 5.4 million individuals in the UK between June 2011 and February 2012 reports Mashable.
Using the so-called "Safari Workaround," Google allegedly placed cookies that tracked iPhones' internet browsing history, which the company then used to sell ads.
The group believes those affected are eligible for compensation for violation of trust.
"Those affected do not have to pay any legal fees, conduct any research or (at this stage) contact any lawyers," the group said in a statement.
Lloyd told the FT he expected each claimant to receive "several hundred pounds" should the case be successful.
A court date is expected to be set for early spring 2018. It's the first representative action of this kind in the UK against a major tech company that is centered on the alleged mass misuse of personal data, according to FT.
Lloyd said:
“I believe that what Google did was quite simply against the law. Their actions have affected millions, and we’ll be asking the courts to remedy this major breach of trust.
Through this action, we will send a strong message to Google and other tech giants in Silicon Valley that we’re not afraid to fight back if our laws are broken.
Google on the contrary said in a statement: "This is not new — we have defended similar cases before. We don't believe it has any merit and we will contest it."