Google stands firm against a lawsuit in Britain that may cost it millions of dollars for privacy breach resulting from consumers being tracked without their consent. The search engine giant insists that British courts do not have jurisdiction and it must be sued in California where it is based.
There will be three test cases this week and hundreds might pour in if they get the go from the courts. The claimants in England condemn Google for attempting to shut down the case in the High Court.
"Google's preference that British consumers should travel all the way to California to seek redress for its wrongdoings is arrogant, immoral and a disgrace," said Judith Vidal-Hall, one of the plaintiffs, in an interview with The Telegraph.
Another plaintiff Marc Bradshaw said in an interview with the Daily Mail, "It seems absurd to suggest that consumers can't bring a claim against a company which is operating in the UK and is even constructing a $1bn headquarters in London."
Privacy lawsuits and fines are nothing new to Google. It has been fined by regulators in the United States for millions of dollars for tracking consumers to know their browsing habits even without their permission. In a case last year, regulators imposed $22.5 million in fines for privacy breach. In November, a similar complaint resulted to $17 million of fees paid to several states in the U.S.
However, Google has pointed out that there has been no real harm done to the claimants when they were tracked by its system. The said Internet users were tracked because cookies were installed on their iPhones between 2011 and 2012.
"We're asking the court to re-examine whether this case meets the standards required in the UK for a case like this to go to trial," a Google spokesperson said. The representative also cited a similar case that was dropped in the U.S.
The Olswang law firm represent the claimants in England. It believes that Google is just trying to escape responsibilities in Britain when things do not go in its favor and emphasizes that the search engine firm does not respect the privacy laws meant to protect those who live in the UK.
Google is able to avoid taxes in the country by citing its intellectual properties registered in the U.S. and Ireland, but complainants have pointed out before that the company has substantial presence and earnings in the UK.
