Google has agreed to pay $68 million to settle a lawsuit that accused the company of violating the privacy of smartphone users through its voice-activated assistant.
The case claims that Google Assistant recorded private conversations without proper permission and used the information to help target advertising.
Google denied doing anything wrong. Still, the company agreed to settle the case to avoid the risks.
Google has agreed to pay $68 million to settle a lawsuit that accused the company of violating the privacy of smartphone users through its voice-activated assistant. The case claims that Google Assistant recorded private conversations without proper permission and used the information to help target advertising. The proposed settlement was filed in a federal court in San Jose, California, reports Reuters. It still needs approval from US District Judge Beth Labson Freeman.
SurveyThe lawsuit was brought as a class action by smartphone users who said Google illegally recorded and shared their private conversations. According to the complaint, this happened after Google Assistant was activated by mistake, even when users did not mean to turn it on.
Also read: Elon Musk’s X under scrutiny after Grok AI found making explicit images
Google Assistant is meant to respond only when users say specific hot words, such as “Hey Google” or “Okay Google.” However, users said the system sometimes misunderstood normal speech as these commands. Because of these false accepts, users claimed they later received ads related to things they had talked about privately.
Google denied doing anything wrong. Still, the company agreed to settle the case to avoid the risks.
Also read: Meta faces lawsuit over alleged access to private WhatsApp messages
The settlement applies to people who bought Google devices or were affected by false accepts since May 18, 2016. If approved, eligible users may be able to receive compensation from the settlement fund. Lawyers representing the users may seek up to one-third of the total settlement, or about $22.7 million, for legal fees.
In December 2024, Apple agreed to pay $95 million to settle similar claims from smartphone users. The Google settlement highlights ongoing worries about how voice assistants work and how much they listen.
Also read: Apple may introduce AI powered Siri with iOS 26.4 next month: Eligible devices, features and more
Follow Us
Ayushi Jain
Ayushi works as Chief Copy Editor at Digit, covering everything from breaking tech news to in-depth smartphone reviews. Prior to Digit, she was part of the editorial team at IANS. View Full Profile
