Google has agreed to pay $8.5 million to settle a class action lawsuit alleging that Google Buzz, the search engine's attempt at social networking, failed to take steps to protect users' privacy.
The suit was filed in February by Harvard Law student Eva Hibnick, who discovered Buzz only when she logged into her Gmail account on February 9 -- the day Buzz was formally launched -- and saw the application advertised on the left side of her screen.
Hibnick's suit alleged that Buzz broadcast users' private information without obtaining advance permission, or even warning them that certain data was about to become public.
Indeed, Todd Jackson, the project manager in charge of introducing Buzz, went so far as to write on Google's blog that Buzz is built right into Gmail, so you don't have to peck out an entirely new set of friends from scratch -- it just works.
Blogger says Buzz put her in danger
One of Hibnick's biggest concerns was Buzz's auto-follow feature, which automatically signed users up to receive status updates from the six contacts that they most frequently spoke with.
Hibnick was not alone in her concern; on February 11, blogger Harriet Jacobs recounted her own personal horror story. Jacobs wrote that, while her two most frequently-used contacts were her boyfriend and her mother, [t]here's a BIG drop-off between them and my other 'most frequent' contacts.
Jacobs's third most frequent contact was none other than her abusive ex-husband. Equally troubling, several of this ex-husband's close friends rounded out the top six.
Which is why its SO EXCITING, Google, Jacobs blogged, that you AUTOMATICALLY allowed all my most frequent contacts access to my Reader, which in many instances contained my current location or workplace.
My privacy concerns are not trite, Jacobs continued. They are linked to my actual physical safety, and I will now have to spend the next few days maintaining that safety by continually knocking down followers as they pop up.
Google quickly did away with auto-follow, instead providing a list of recommendations but leaving the ultimate decision with the user.
Google pleased with settlement
In a statement, Google declared itself satisfied with the [settlement] agreement and glad to move forward.
We have always been committed to offering users transparency and choice in Buzz and all our products, and will continue to work together with users to provide the best user experience possible, Google said.
The bulk of the settlement money will be provided to groups promoting Internet privacy. Part of the fund will also cover attorneys' fees. When the suit was originally filed, Hibnick's lawyer, Gary Mason, said that money wasn't really an object.
What we'd like to see as result is a commitment from Google that they're not going to do this again the next time they launch a product, Mason said at the time.
The settlement, which was filed in federal court in San Jose, California, still requires final approval from a judge.
