Settlement resolves claims over unauthorized tracking of user location, searches, and biometric data by the tech giant

Google has agreed to pay $1.375 billion to settle two major privacy lawsuits filed by the state of Texas, marking one of the largest legal recoveries from the tech giant in a state-level data privacy case.

Allegations of Unlawful Data Collection

The lawsuits, originally filed in 2022 by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, accused Google of illegally collecting and storing users’ personal data, including: location, tracking private “incognito” mode searches, and capturing voice and facial recognition data—all without proper user consent.

“For years, Google secretly tracked people’s movements, private searches, and even their voiceprints and facial geometry through their products and services,”

Paxton said in a statement.

“In Texas, Big Tech is not above the law. I fought back and won.”

Paxton’s office called the resolution the largest recovery nationwide by any state attorney general for enforcement of privacy laws against Google.

No Admission of Wrongdoing

Google is settling the lawsuits without admitting any wrongdoing or liability and without making changes to its current products or services. In a statement, spokesperson José Castañeda said the cases involved outdated policies.

“This settles a raft of old claims, many of which have already been resolved elsewhere, concerning product policies we have long since changed,”

Castañeda said.

“We are pleased to put them behind us, and we will continue to build robust privacy controls into our services.”

Legal Context and Background

The litigation is part of a broader wave of privacy and antitrust scrutiny against Big Tech. The Texas case echoes a similar lawsuit settled last year by Meta—Facebook’s parent company—for its use of facial recognition technology, also led by Paxton’s office.

Google has previously pushed back against the Texas suits. In one instance, an appeals court found the company lacked sufficient ties to Texas to be sued there. Google also argued that its products had been mischaracterized, stating, for example, that Google Photos only scans users’ faces to group similar images and does not use that data for advertising.

The settlement also follows a string of high-profile antitrust rulings against Google. U.S. courts recently found that the company had illegally maintained monopolies in web search and advertising technology, with remedies under consideration—including a possible divestment of its Chrome browser business. Google has said it intends to appeal both decisions.

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