Google hit with $314m fine for collecting data from idle Android phones without permission
Google has been ordered to pay $314.6 million to Android phone users in California for collecting data from idle phones.
Google in 2024: Net profit: $100 billion
The government: "here is a tiny fine that you can't even see in a microscope."
That does nothing to help anyone hurt by the actions.
Hey, they're gonna get their $2.97 checks. That's a gallon of gas somewhere.
I agree, but one thing that people always miss with these kinds of rulings is that they generally come with increased oversight and greater fines for repeat offenses. They're more likely to be caught if they try it again, and it'll grow until it actually hurts.
Still, this should be a lot larger. They should be trying to dissuade first-time offenses as well, not letting them take advantage of the system for profit because it won't hurt much when they're found out.
Alt text: a screenshot from final fantasy tactics with a character saying: “If the penalty for a crime is a fine, then that law only exists for the lower class.”
Assuming the fine isn't progressive, of course.
Over here in Finland fines for any but the minor offences are defined in percents of income, not in fixed sums of money. There have been cases of traffic fines of several hundreds of thousands for going 30 km/h over the speed limit. That makes them a punishment for very richest people as well, not only for the lower class.
Except capital income can be hidden in other countries, still giving an unfair advantage to the super rich.
That's actually shopped. The game's writer said he wishes he wrote that line, though.
A fine is the cost of doing business. Unless something changes they’ll keep doing it.
It's just the government's cut since they don't pay much in taxes.
And it isn't like the victims see any of it
Years ago, when this policy was first being contemplated, someone at google plugged a number, likely larger than this, into a spreadsheet analyzing the cost/benefit of spying on their customers.
This is just post-activation operating expense from their perspective.
Google made 100 billion last year.
300 million is barely a blip.
The fine should have been 30 billion.
if the fines arent big enough to seriously hurt a company, Then the fines are not big enough to change their behavior.
They just become a tax on evil.
They should definitely be higher than what they are, even the GDPR fines are a joke, its likely added to a line "legal expenses" in their expenses.
While it looks like the EU fines are ramping up over time, it still just feels silly right now. But I guess that is intentional.
Don’t we ban Chinese phones for the same actions?
China bad.
laughs in GrapheneOS
cries in cheap phone that doesn't flash GrapheneOS
So of the billions they made with that they have to pay a small fee.
Oh noes
Jail them!
Jail them!
In prison gen pop. Make execs afraid to break the law for profit and/or fund reform for the prison system.
Fine needs to be much bigger. All the decision makers that approved it need to be removed and barred from working in the industry
The linked Reuters article provides a bit more context:
The jury agreed with the plaintiffs that Alphabet's Google (GOOGL.O), was liable for sending and receiving information from the devices without permission while they were idle, causing what the lawsuit had called "mandatory and unavoidable burdens shouldered by Android device users for Google's benefit."
[…]
Google spokesperson Jose Castaneda said in a statement that the company would appeal, and that the verdict "misunderstands services that are critical to the security, performance, and reliability of Android devices."
opens new tab
the verdict "misunderstands services that are critical to the security, performance, and reliability of Android devices."
Ummmm maybe I’m misunderstanding but how on earth is opening a new tab critical to security and performance?
I don't chase dropped pennies, and I don't think google does either!
Doesn't sound like the suit was about the collection at all and just about the data transmission costing users mobile data usage.
Vague articles are vague.
So when are we all finally going to ditch Google/Apple and move on to actual FOSS phones like Librem5 or Fairphone?
When they are good.
Another problem I have is multifactor apps. Can I get duo on a Linux phone? Or banking apps? Some software sends notifications to the phone to log in on a computer, for example.
I'm sure I could get around it, but ultimately I just want a good camera.
Yeah, I need to know that Microsoft authenticator, duo mobile, all banking and trading apps, Venmo, and steam guard work on Linux. I know a lot of banking apps do, but if duo mobile doesn't, I'm locked out of my work.
When Librem stops sucking ass and Fairphone stops being just as bad as any other Android phone in terms of integrating Google services and allowing data collection
Which one allows me to actually control my phone and reject all the updates?
Fairphone is FOSS??
They submitted kernel patches for (at least some) support of the FP6 the day it released. The preinstalled OS isn't FOSS though a good few FOSS OSs/distros support their older phones (and presumably the FP6 eventually).
So the answer is... sort of? Personally I just think they're just FOSS-friendly
Oh noes
They're shivering in their boots
