"Google faces lawsuit over tracking in apps even when users opted out," 14 July 2020

Google records what people are doing on hundreds of thousands of mobile apps even when they follow the company’s recommended settings for stopping such monitoring, a lawsuit seeking class action status alleged…The new complaint…accuses Google of violating federal wiretap law and California privacy law by logging what users are looking at in news, ride-hailing and other types of apps despite them having turned off “Web & App Activity” tracking in their Google account settings.

The lawsuit alleges the data collection happens through Google’s Firebase, a set of software popular among app makers for storing data, delivering notifications and ads, and tracking glitches and clicks…“Even when consumers follow Google’s own instructions and turn off ‘Web & App Activity’ tracking on their ‘Privacy Controls,’ Google nevertheless continues to intercept consumers’ app usage and app browsing communications and personal information,” the lawsuit contends.

…U.S. antitrust investigators are looking into whether Google has unlawfully stifled competition in advertising and other businesses by effectively making Firebase unavoidable.

[Also refers to: Facebook, Oracle]