Last week Gmail user, Andranik Souvalian of Cranston, Rhode Island, filed a lawsuit against Google claiming that “[Google] intentionally exceeded it’s authorization to access and control confidential and private information”. This comes as a result to last month’s Buzz debacle.
According to the complaint, “Google, through its Buzz social networking tool, has unlawfully disclosed its customers’ private communications and records, including but not limited to, the automatic and unauthorized importing of its customers’ private e-mail contacts into the Buzz social network. Buzz has raised privacy concerns including, but not limited to automatic importing of private contacts and showing them to friends and importing without authorization the customers’ private photos onto the Buzz social network.”
Souvalian’s attorney, Peter N. Waslyk has this to say about the lawsuit: “a very important issue with respect to individuals’ privacy rights and their right to be alerted when their privacy is not being honored online.”
It seems as if the complaints keep piling up for Google. Last week, an amendment to a separate complaint was filed against Google stating that they violated users’ privacy by using contact lists for unrelated reasons.
