Google is once again accused of manipulating users and their data for the company’s own gain.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton alleged in a lawsuit Thursday that Google collected biometric data without user consent. A press release from his office says the data collection violates Texas privacy laws.
“[I]n yet another violation of Texans’ privacy, [Google] has collected millions of biometric identifiers, including voiceprints and records of face geometry, from Texans through its products and services like Google Photos, Google Assistant, and Nest Hub Max. Google’s exploitation of the personal information of Texans for its own commercial interests is a knowing violation of the state’s Capture or Use of Biometric Identifier Act,” the press release read.
The lawsuit claims that Texans “have become unwitting cash cows being milked by Google for profits."
"In blatant defiance of that law, Google has, since at least 2015, collected biometric data from innumerable Texans and used their faces and their voices to serve Google’s commercial ends," the complaint reads. "Indeed, all across the state, everyday Texans have become unwitting cash cows being milked by Google for profits."
In the release, Paxton added that the lawsuit is the latest battle in his war against Big Tech.
“Google’s indiscriminate collection of the personal information of Texans, including very sensitive information like biometric identifiers, will not be tolerated,” he said. “I will continue to fight Big Tech to ensure the privacy and security of all Texans.”
In June, Paxton opened an investigation into the number of “bot” accounts on Twitter.
"Texans rely on Twitter’s public statements that nearly all its users are real people. It matters not only for regular Twitter users, but also Texas businesses and advertisers who use Twitter for their livelihoods," Paxton said in a statement at the time. "If Twitter is misrepresenting how many accounts are fake to drive up their revenue, I have a duty to protect Texans."
As for Google, the company faced significant criticism this year after reports surfaced that the company might cave to leftist pressure to manipulate search results and hide the existence of pro-life pregnancy centers in favor of those that perform abortions.
NewsBusters reported in July that a group of Republican attorneys general threatened to sue the company for the censorship should it take place.
“As the chief legal officers of our respective States, we the undersigned Attorneys General are extremely troubled by this gallingly un-American political pressure,” the attorneys general wrote in a letter to the company.
Conservatives are under attack. Contact Google at 650-253-0000 and demand it mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency and an equal footing for conservatives. If you have been censored, contact us at the Media Research Center contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
