US: DC, 3 states sue Google saying it invades users' privacy
Washington, Jan 25: The District of Columbia and three states are suing Google for allegedly deceiving consumers and invading their privacy by making it nearly impossible for them to stop their location from being tracked.
In the lawsuit filed Monday in a Washington court, D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine alleges Google has systematically deceived consumers about how their locations are tracked and used. He also says the internet search giant has misled users into believing they can control the information the company collects about them.
In reality, consumers who use Google products cannot prevent Google from collecting, storing and profiting from their location, the lawsuit says. Google has "an unprecedented ability to monitor consumers' daily lives.
Google makes it impossible for users to opt out of having their sensitive and valuable location data tracked, the suit alleges.
The attorneys general of Texas, Indiana and Washington state are filing similar lawsuits in their state courts, according to Racine's office.
Google's business model relies on constant surveillance of its users, his office said in a news release. The suit asserts that Google has a powerful financial incentive to obscure the details of its location-data collection and to make it difficult for consumers to opt out. It says location data is a key part of its digital advertising business that generated 150 billion in revenue for Google's parent company, Alphabet Inc. in 2020.
The company, based in Mountain View, California, is disputing the claims.
The attorneys general are bringing a case based on inaccurate claims and outdated assertions about our settings," Google spokesperson Jose Castaneda said in a statement. "We have always built privacy features into our products and provided robust controls for location data.
The company will defend itself and "set the record straight, Castaneda said.
The lawsuit is the latest in a raft of legal salvos against the tech giant, whose search engine accounts for an estimated 90% of web searches worldwide.
In December 2020, 10 states led by Texas filed a federal suit against Google accusing it of anticompetitive conduct in the online advertising industry, including a deal to manipulate sales with rival Facebook.
In October 2020, the U.S. Justice Department joined by 11 states filed a landmark antitrust suit against Google for allegedly abusing its dominance in online search and advertising.
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16 people arrested for drug peddling, contraband worth Rs 5.24 cr seized: Police
Bengaluru (PTI): Bengaluru City Police on Friday said 16 people, including two women were arrested allegedly for drug peddling and contraband worth Rs 5.24 crore have been seized.
The arrests were made by the Narcotics Wing of the Central Crime Branch, they said.
A total of 3,000 MDMA ecstasy pills (1.93 kg), 230 grams of MDMA crystal, 48.75 kg ganja, and 306 grams of hydro ganja have been seized, police said, adding that its estimated market value is Rs 5.24 crore.
During the operations, a total of 16 persons, including eight from other states and two women, were taken into custody on different dates, Bengaluru Police Commissioner Seemant Kumar Singh said during a press conference here.
"During interrogation, the accused, including the two women , confessed that they were procuring banned narcotic substances such as MDMA ecstasy pills, MDMA crystal, ganja, and hydro ganja at lower prices from foreign nationals, persons from other states, and local unidentified suppliers, with the intention of earning easy money, and were selling them to the public, including college students," he said.
Efforts are ongoing to trace the foreign and out-of-state suppliers who were providing narcotic substances to the accused, police said, adding that further investigation is underway.
In a separate special drive, officers and staff of the CCB Narcotics Wing conducted operations in the limits of Bagalur, Whitefield, Parappana Agrahara, and Madanayakanahalli police stations against foreign nationals who were overstaying their visas and allegedly involved in drug peddling, police said.
"Nine foreign nationals were taken into custody. As per the orders of the FRRO (Foreigners Regional Registration Officer), the nine foreign nationals were sent to the Foreigners Detention Centre. Subsequently, two of them have been deported to their home country," he added.
