Someone has anonymously filed a lawsuit against Google alleging that the tech giant illegally collects health data, including data on abortion searches, on websites that use Google’s technology like Google Analytics.
Google is the one being sued, despite the fact that it was Planned Parenthood’s decision to install the Google trackers on the website.
We obtained a copy of the lawsuit for you here.
The anonymous complainant, who is seeking class action status for the lawsuit, claims that her private data was intercepted by Google when she used the scheduling pages of Planned Parenthood’s site in 2018 to look for an abortion provider.
The complaint adds that Google illegally collected the medical data of the plaintiff and others “without authorization and proper compensation.” The suit seeks the establishment of a compensation fund by the tech giant and for it to stop collecting the data, arguing that it “aided and abetted” medical care providers to violate California’s Confidentiality of Medical Information Act (CMIA).
The suit also claims that Google violated the California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA).
The complaint accuses Google of using the plaintiff’s data “to provide marketing and analytics services as well as improve its ad targeting capabilities and data points on users.” Jane Doe is seeking a jury trial.
The suit insists that Jane Doe and potential class members did not “authorize or consent” to data tracking, and that they have “a reasonable expectation of privacy in their confidential communications, including information relating to their searches for and scheduling of abortions and other medical services, and their sensitive medical information.”
Previous similar lawsuits have concentrated on healthcare providers – the websites using solutions provided by Google like Analytics. Such lawsuits argue that providers of medical care should not be using tools that track data.
