Hawaiʻi will receive $4.7 million from Google as part of a settlement over the company's use of location tracking data.
Google uses a consumer's location data for its digital advertising business. More specifically, it collects and uses personal and behavioral data to build detailed user profiles for targeted advertisements.
According to the state Office of Consumer Protection, location data is among the most sensitive and valuable personal information Google collects. Even a limited amount of location data can expose a person’s identity and routines and can be used to infer personal details.
The settlement comes after 40 state attorneys general filed a lawsuit after a 2018 Associated Press article detailed how the company was misusing user data. The investigation found Google still tracked the location of consumers despite them disabling the geo-tracking feature.
The article also found the company violated state consumer protection laws dating back to at least 2014. Specifically, it confused users with the scope of its location history setting, and neglected that its Web & App Activity setting existed and collected location information.
“This historic settlement holds Google accountable for misleading consumers into a false sense of security regarding its privacy settings. Instead of respecting the explicit wishes of consumers regarding their privacy settings it took advantage of the trust that they had placed in it for its own financial gain,” said Stephen Levins, executive director of the Office of Consumer Protection.
As part of the settlement, Google is required to be more transparent with consumers about its practices, and make account controls more user-friendly.
The settlement also limits the company's use and storage of certain types of location information.
