Google Wins Dismissal of California Geolocation Data Suit

A proposed class action against Google for unlawfully storing users’ geolocation data was dismissed from California federal court Dec. 19.

The complaint didn’t demonstrate a protectable privacy interest in the information that Google stored, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California said.

The purported class sued Google for illegally tracking and storing geolocation data with its mobile apps. The plaintiffs said they reasonably believed that turning off Google’s “Location History” feature would also prevent it from retaining the data. But disabling the feature only prevented tracking, and didn’t stop Google from capturing and storing geolocation data.

The ...