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Gmail Privacy Lawsuit: Insights into the Consolidated Litigation Against Google Inc.

This report by Ben Cumber examines the ongoing litigation against Google Inc. regarding privacy infringements related to Gmail. Seven plaintiffs from various U.S. states allege that Google unlawfully scans emails to create user profiles for targeted advertisements, violating the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) of 1986. Key legal arguments revolve around consent and what constitutes Google's "ordinary course of business." The outcome could have significant implications for email privacy and data collection practices.

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Gmail Privacy Lawsuit: Insights into the Consolidated Litigation Against Google Inc.

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  1. Gmail & Privacy A report on a Consolidated Litigation against Google, Inc. by Ben Cumber

  2. Who’s Suing? • 7 plaintiffs from all over the U.S. • Texas • Florida • Illinois • Maryland • Pennsylvania • 2 from California

  3. Why is Google being sued? Gmail scans all email that it handles. • Spam Filters • Virus protection • Targeted Advertisements • User Profiles • Search • Spell-check

  4. Targeted Advertisements

  5. Why is Google being sued? Gmail scans all email that it handles. • Spam Filters • Virus protection • Targeted Advertisements • User Profiles • Search • Spell-check

  6. User Profiles • “Map” of user’s interactions collected from several of Google’s Apps. • Compilation of all the extracted data. • Marketing purposes. • Concerning? • They didn’t ask. • What are they doing with this information? • How much do they collect? • What do they collect?

  7. Gmail- The Secret Data Mining Machine Plaintiffs Argue: “Google actually diverts email messages to separate devices to extract the meaning of the message” [1] • Violation of the Electronic Communications Privacy Act(ECPA) of 1986. • Wiretap Act which prohibits the interception of any electronic communication in transit.

  8. Gmail- The Secret Data Mining Machine • Google argues that they are exempt from the Wiretap Act. • Exceptions to the Wiretap Act include • “devices used by wire and Electronic Communication Service Providers in the ordinary course of business”[4] • What is Gmail’s “ordinary course of business”?

  9. Ordinary Course of Business • Google’s argument – Everything we do is in our ordinary course of business and Yahoo! does it. • Plaintiff’s argument – Gmail’s ordinary course of business is to assist in sending and receiving email. • Courts ruling – Google’s interception is outside of their ordinary course of business.

  10. Lack of Consent • Google’s argument- Everyone, even non-gmail users, consent to the interception of email. • Plaintiff’s argument - No one agrees to the interception of email for the uses of targeted advertising and creation of user-profiles. • Courts ruling – Google does not explicitly state that an interception will be used for targeted advertisements or creation of user-profiles.[3][2]

  11. State Laws • CIPA - California’s anti-wiretapping law. • Section 631 – State version of Wiretap Law • Section 632 – Confidential communication statute • Maryland, Florida, Pennsylvania state laws. • All of these laws mirror the ECPA except for: • California’s Section 632 of the CIPA • Pennsylvania’s statute • Only protects the sender from wiretapping but not the receiver.

  12. Trial? • Will the case make it to trial? • What does that mean for email? • What does that mean for targeted advertising in general?

  13. Questions?

  14. References [1] DEFENDANT GOOGLE INC.’S MOTION TO DISMISS, No. 5:13-MD-002430-LHK (N.D. Cal. Sept. 5, 2013), www.consumerwatchdog.org/resources/googlemotion061313.pdf [2] GMAIL PRIVACY POLICY,www.google.com/intl/en/policies/privacy/, 10/3/2013. [3] IN RE GOOGLE INC. GMAIL LITIGATION, No. 13-MD-02430-LHK (N.D. Cal. Sept. 26, 2013). [4] PLAINTIFFS’ OPPOSITION TO GOOGLE INC.’S MOTION TO DISMISS, No. 5:13-MD-002430-LHK (N.D. Cal. Sept. 5, 2013), news.softpedia.com/media/opposition.pdf

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