Facebook has agreed to pay $90 million to settle a decades-old privacy lawsuit accusing it of tracking users’ Internet activity even after they log out of the social media website.
There was a proposed preliminary agreement filed with the US District Court in San Jose, Calif. on Monday night, and requires the approval of a judge. The agreement also requires Facebook to remove improperly collected data.
Users accused the Meta Platform Inc entity of violating federal and state privacy and wiretapping laws by using plug-ins to store cookies that are tracked when they visit external websites with Facebook “Like” buttons. Were.
Facebook then allegedly compiled users. browsing History in profiles that he sold to advertisers.
The case was dismissed in June 2017, but was revived in April 2020 by a federal appeals court, which ruled that users could attempt to prove that the Menlo Park, Calif.-based company unjustly made profits. earned and Violation their privacy.
Facebook’s subsequent attempts to persuade the US Supreme Court to take up the matter were unsuccessful.
According to settlement papers, the company denied wrongdoing but settled to avoid the cost and risk of testing.
settling” is in the best interest of our community And Our shareholders and we are pleased to move forward with this issue,” META spokesman Drew Pusseteri said in an email.
The agreement covers Facebook users in the United States who visited non-Facebook websites between April 22, 2010 and September 26, 2011 that displayed Facebook’s “Like” button.
Plaintiffs’ attorneys plan to collect $26.1 million, or up to 29% of legal fees, from the settlement fund. The trial began in February 2012.
Facebook has faced other privacy complaints.
In July 2019, it agreed to increase privacy security measures In a US Federal Trade Commission settlement that also included a $5 billion fine.
On Monday, the Texas Attorney General sued Meta, claiming it collected facial recognition data without users’ permission.
The case is in re: Facebook Internet Tracking Litigation, US District Court, Northern District of California, No. 12-MD-02314.
This story has been published without modification in text from a wire agency feed.
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