Darktrace Acquired by Private Equity Firm Thoma Bravo in $5 Billion Deal
Despite the group's determination, Google will not face mass legal action just yet. The tech behemoth argued that the type of “representative action” being brought against it was inappropriate.
Lawyers for the company added that there was no suggestion that the Safari bypass resulted in disclosing data to third parties. Moreover, they claimed that it was not possible to identify affected individuals.
Mr Lloyd stated that the judgement was "extremely disappointing." He added that it "effectively leaves millions of people without any practical way to seek redress and compensation," despite the misuse of personal data.
Google had less luck in the US. Hugh Tomlinson QC, who represents Lloyd, highlighted that Google had already paid $39.5m to settle similar claims over unlawful data acquisition in the US.
Tech giants "still not GDPR compliant"
Google is still failing to comply with the new European privacy rules, according to the consumer group BEUC. The report states that the policies of Apple, Google, Facebook, and Amazon are vague and unclear.
Today’s tech giants possess an incredible amount of power. At present, it seems like these companies even have the ability to capitalise on the very problems they create.
As the dust of GDPR settles, tech giants could emerge as the champions of a newly regulated data economy. The unwavering influence of tech giants is growing everyday.
Interested in GDPR? Listen to our podcast with industry experts Richard Benjamins and Richard Merrygold here