Google will settle a lawsuit claiming that it collected the personal information of children who were using YouTube and used that information to give the users targeted ads. The company has agreed to pay $30 million to settle the class action suit.
Reuters reports that the class action suit includes children under the age of 13 in the U.S. who watched YouTube between July 1, 2013 and April 1, 2020, which could include 35 million to 45 million class members.
The preliminary settlement was filed Monday night and will require a judge’s approval.
Google faced a similar lawsuit in 2019 and paid $170 million in fines. Parents of children claim that YouTube is still using the same practices to collect the personal information of children.
Following the 2019 lawsuit, a 2023 study from Adalytics showed that YouTube may have continued collecting and using the information. Google disputed the claims, but U.S. Senators took note and sent a letter to the FTC, asking the organization to investigate.
“YouTube and Google cannot continue treating young people’s data as an unprotected commodity from which to profit with abandon. Not only must the FTC act, but Congress must also pass legislation to protect young people’s privacy online and finally ban targeted advertising to kids and teens. We look forward to working with the Commission to ensure young people continue to have strong privacy protections,” Senator Edward Markey, a democrat from Massachusetts, and Senator Marsha Blackburn, a Republican for Tennessee wrote in the letter.
