Google’s approach to Android privacy is coming under fire following revelations from Arizona’s antitrust lawsuit over phone tracking. As Insider reports, freshly unredacted documents in the case suggest Google made Android privacy settings harder to find. When Google tested OS releases that surfaced privacy features, the company reportedly saw greater use of those features as a “problem” and aimed to put them deeper into the menu system.
The documents suggest that Google collected location data even after users had turned off location sharing, and made privacy settings difficult for users to find. Insider also reports that the documents show Google pressured phone manufacturers into keeping privacy settings hidden, because the settings were popular with users.
Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich filed a lawsuit against Google last May, alleging the company illegally tracked Android users’ location without their consent, even if users had disabled location tracking features. The lawsuit suggested Google kept location tracking running in the background for some features, and only stopped the practice when users disabled system-level tracking.
The unredacted documents show one Google employee asked if there was “no way to give a third party app your location and not Google?” adding that it didn’t sound like something the company would want revealed to the media, according to Insider.
Google has been improving privacy as of late. Android 12 will have an “approximate” location option in addition to a Privacy Dashboard and other controls. If the allegations hold up, though, the firm may have a difficult court battle ahead they suggest Google was determined to collect data despite Android users’ preferences.
